Hey Besties! When learning how to decorate sugar cookies with royal icing, the first technique to focus on is flooding. It’s the base layer and foundation for the vast majority of designs. And throughout the process of learning this technique, you will also learn SO much about royal icing, how it behaves and how you can manipulate it to do what you want. But you may not realize that there are several different methods you can use to beautifully flood cookies. Every cookier finds what works best for them, but what works best for one isn’t necessarily what works best for you! And if you’ve been here before, you know I’m all about giving you options. So today, I’m featuring 4 different techniques you can use to learn how to flood cookies with royal icing! Pros, cons, considerations and comparisons…we’ll cover it all! Let’s go!
Let’s talk royal icing
Here’s something that no one really talks about. Every royal icing recipe can yield very different results; and I mean drastically different results. So if you’re new to cookie decorating or if you’ve only ever used one recipe, I challenge you to try a few different recipes. You’ll be amazed at how different the results can be, and which recipes give YOU the results you want. Royal icing is also very sensitive to humidity, so the results two cookiers get when making the same recipe in two very different homes, will also be very different. I tell you all this not to scare or overwhelm you, quite the opposite, actually. You will find the recipe that YOU love best, but it can take a few tries to figure it out. Everyone talks about royal icing as if we’re all using the same batch, but that couldn’t be further from reality, so I like cookiers to keep this in mind from the start!
Now if you already have a royal icing recipe that you love, I love that for you. But if you need a fabulous recipe or if your current recipe is giving you any grief, THIS walks you through exactly how I make my icing every day. It’s very simple and quick to make and the magic is in the method of HOW it’s made. I achieve beautiful results consistently without any of the common issues that plague fellow cookiers. Decorating cookies is so much more fun when you don’t have to worry about color bleed, cratering or other issues.
Flooding 101
Alright, let’s talk flooding. This is not the first time I’ve covered cookie flooding and in fact, Flooding 101 is consistently one of my most popular tutorials. In that post, I covered exactly how I flood my cookies and showed some of the common issues cookiers run into. If you haven’t seen it before, it’s definitely worth it and has been helpful for thousands of fellow cookiers. But like I said earlier, that is what works best for me but might not be what works best for you! I’m here to help and provide guidance but will never claim my techniques are “the best” or the only way. Only you can determine what works best for you! So we’re going to start with 3 different ways you can beautifully flood cookies using a piping bag.
Fun fact: We have two cookiers in our house and we are a house divided when it comes to flooding! My daughter and I use two different methods to flood. That’s what works for each of us!
royal icing consistencies
If decorating with royal icing is completely new to you, THIS royal icing consistency guide will be your true bestie. It’s simply another very popular resource that has made a big difference for fellow cookiers when learning.
timing method for consistencies
When describing the consistencies in the flooding methods below, you’ll see me refer to consistencies such as a 15-second consistency. You’ll also see my piping bags labeled as such in the video. If that is a foreign language to you, let me explain. This is a timing method that is used universally in the cookie decorating world to help communicate consistencies. So if someone says a “15-second consistency,” it means that when the icing was in the bowl, they ran a knife through it, to “cut” the icing, and it took approximately 15 seconds for the icing to return to perfectly smooth in the bowl. So a 5-second consistency would be much thinner, and a 30-second consistency would be thicker. Look at that, you’re already talking the cookier lingo now!
method 1: One consistency
I flood my cookies using one consistency, which is about a 15 second royal icing consistency. I outline my cookie and then immediately flood it, for a seamless appearance. This is a very common technique among fellow cookiers. And it really just requires nailing the consistency. Too thin and your icing will run off the cookie, or too thick and your icing won’t settle smooth. Once you learn this technique, it’s very efficient!
method 2: Two consistencies, seamless look
The next method is using two consistencies – one for outlining and one for flooding, but still immediately flooding after outlining for the same seamless appearance. This is how my daughter floods her cookies! For some cookiers, having an outline with a thicker consistency helps give them more precision and control.
For this technique, I use about a 30-second consistency for the outline and then immediately flood with a 15-second consistency. When you immediately flood after outlining, the outline will seamlessly meld with the flood.
method 3: Two consistencies, visible outline
This method is similar to the one above, but instead of immediately flooding after outlining, you let the outline dry before flooding. This method can be simplest to learn since the dried outline provides a strong wall or barrier to prevent the flood from spilling over. So consistencies aren’t as critical here since you’re essentially filling a dried outline. However, many cookiers don’t like the visible outline on the finished cookie. Again, it’s completely cookier preference! If you like the look, this may be a great method for you. But if you want a seamless appearance, you’ll want to go with one of the other methods above.
It’s also worth noting that since you let the outline dry, it is more important to have a nicer, cleaner outline when using this method. In the others, your outline melds into the flood, but in this method, it is seen. If outlining is challenging for you, you may prefer one of the seamless outline options better.
how to flood cookies with royal icing – demo video!
Let’s see these different methods in action, shall we? In THIS quick video, you’ll see me demonstrate each of these three flooding methods and the results.
Flooding results
When it’s all said and done, methods 1 & 2 yield virtually the same results. And the only difference with method 3 is that the outline is visible. So again, don’t stress too much and just use the method that works best for you!
Didn’t you say there were 4 methods?
Yes, Bestie, I did! The 4th option doesn’t involve a piping bag whatsoever! Dipping your cookies is another common method for flooding. A completely different method but one that many cookiers lover, especially when they have a large volume of cookies they need to flood! The key to this method is icing prep and it’s all covered and demonstrated in THIS dipping tutorial.
Ready to flood some cookies?!
I hope that this post all about how to flood cookies with royal icing has been helpful! And remember, each one of these is a technique. They will not be perfect the first time! It is a skill and learning process, and you will improve each time, but don’t expect perfection on the first try. If it was easy, everyone would do it, but it’s not!
And don’t forget that I shared all these options for a reason! If one method is proving to be more difficult for you, then try a different method. You will find what works best for you, just like you’ll find the icing recipe you love most.
If you need any more help, have any question or want to share your progress, me and thousands of fellow Besties hang out HERE just for that! Get the support you need, celebrate your success and even laugh at our fails; come join us!
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Thank you so much for teaching these flooding methods! I can really use these.🥰
So happy this was helpful! Happy Decorating!!