Want to add a fun, feminine detail onto just about any decorated cookie? How about a little lace trim made from royal icing?
This simple technique just takes a piping bag and a flat - food ONLY - paintbrush! Well, you'll also need royal icing (this is my foolproof royal icing recipe) and cut-out cookies. (I used my vanilla bean cut-out cookie recipe for these.)
How to Make Lace-Trim Decorated Cookies
You'll need:
- cut-out cookies, virtually any shape
- royal icing
- gel paste food coloring (I used Chefmaster White)
- piping bag, fitted with a coupler
- #2 icing tip (option: use a tipless bag)
- food-only Filbert paintbrush
- water
- paper towel
[NOTE: For these cookies, I'm adding the lace trim to a "naked" cookie before continuing on with the decorating. You can absolutely use this technique on a cookie that has been flooded. BE SURE the cookie is COMPLETELY DRY before adding the lace detail.]
Start by piping a series of curved lines along the edge of the cookie. Do several at a time, but not too many as piping consistency royal icing will start to dry quickly.
Dampen a Filbert paintbrush (used only for food) in water and blot on a paper towel.
What is a Filbert paintbrush anyway?
A Filbert brush is a flat paintbrush with a soft, curved tip. It'll give that rounded look of lace more so than a flat paintbrush. I realize I've mentioned this 17 times already but have dedicated food-only brushes for cookies. I keep a stash of them in my kitchen cabinet near the sprinkles, so I never mix my brushes.
Place the paintbrush into the piped icing and pull down. Wipe the brush on a paper towel every so often, re-dampening as needed. Repeat.
Now your lace trim is ready for any decorating your little heart desires. Here's what I did...
How to decorate lace-trim, polka-dot heart cookies
Use lace technique as above.
Use a #2 tip to pipe the outline of a heart, leaving the royal icing lace exposed.
Thin pink and white icing with water a bit at a time, stirring gently until the icing is thinned to a 3-second consistency. When a ribbon of icing is dropped back into the bowl, it will disappear in a 3-second count. If too thin, add in more sifted powdered sugar.
Cover with a damp dishtowel and let sit for several minutes.
Pour icing into squeeze bottles. For small dots, use a bottle like Sugarbelle's icing bottles with the removable tip and swap the tip for one with a small opening.
Working 6 cookies at a time, fill in the outline with thinned pink icing. Use a toothpick to guide to edges and pop any large air bubbles.
Starting with the first cookie filled (or flooded to use the cookie term), add dots on top of the wet pink icing with the white.
[Optional: wait at least one hour, then add some piped flower and leaf details.]
Let the cookies dry uncovered for 6-8 hours or overnight.
These cookies are part of a set that I cannot wait to show you later this week! Can you guess the theme?
