Sugar Cookie Icing Recipe for Decorating
This sugar cookie icing dries soft enough to bite but firm enough to stack. It's made from pantry staples in about 5 minutes. I've made it (literally!) hundreds of times, and it turns out perfect every single time.
The short story: this sugar cookie icing is a simple glaze of powdered sugar, milk, corn syrup, and extract whisked until smooth. This one dries in 2 to 3 hours to a finish that's soft to bite but firm enough to stack. For a corn syrup-free version, swap in honey. It works, but the icing stays stickier, so those cookies won't stack as well.
featured review
"This is absolutely the best sugar cookie icing recipe! I have used this recipe over and over to decorate cookies with fabulous results every time. Delicious and easy!"
- CAROLE -
This is the perfect icing recipe for decorating my cut out cookie recipe. It's creamy, sweet, and packed full of flavor, plus it ends up drying solid enough to pack the cookies in a tin but still soft enough to bite into. And it shines so bright and glossy in the light. It makes for some obnoxiously pretty cookies!
The best part of all? It takes just a couple minutes to whip up using ingredients you already probably have in your pantry. Let's make some frosting!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
This easy, peasy sugar cookie frosting recipe is going to be your go-to for every holiday!
I think the icing can make or break a good cut-out sugar cookie. Too hard and it feels like you're going to break a tooth. Too runny and it's a mess to eat. This recipe is right in between- it's the magical unicorn of sugar cookie icings!
Here's why you'll love this recipe:
- It comes together in minutes using ingredients you already have around. No fuss here! This icing comes together in a flash in a single bowl.
- It's dries hard enough to stack but still soft enough to enjoy. It's the magical unicorn of sugar cookie icings! Soft enough to be tender when you bite into it, but solid enough to make these cookies stackable.
- The flavor is up to you! For classic vanilla sugar cookies, stick to vanilla extract. But peppermint, coconut, and almond are all amazing options as well.
- Super duper extra pretty. Want shiny, smooth, and absolutely perfect looking sugar cookies? This icing will give them to you every time.
Step-by-Step how to MAKE SUGAR COOKIE ICING
1
Combine ingredients in bowl
Mix together powdered sugar (aka confectioner's sugar), milk, corn syrup or honey, and the extract of your choice until smooth. I really like almond extract, but you can flavor it however you like! Start with two tablespoons of milk and add more until the icing is thick enough to stay on top of the cookie but thin enough to settle and dry with a smooth, bump-free top.
A tip on the corn syrup-free icing: I've made it with honey tons of times, and it's delicious and beautiful, but it stays stickier than the corn syrup version, so save it for cookies you won't be stacking.
2
Add in food coloring
If using food coloring, whisk it into the icing until well-distributed. I recommend using gel food coloring if available. It gives you the boldest colors and doesn't water down the icing. But, be warned, it does stain like the dickens! If kids are helping, liquid food coloring may be the safer bet. If you want more than one color, divide the batch into smaller bowls before you add any.
3
Decorate your sugar cookies
Squeeze, spread, or dip the icing onto your fully cooled rolled sugar cookies. Wait until they're completely cool, because warm cookies make the icing run everywhere.
When kids are helping, a squeeze bottle is the way to go. When it's just me, I usually spread it with a popsicle stick. You can also dip the cookies if you thin the icing a little, just do it over parchment paper because it gets messy. If you'd like to use sprinkles, add them before the icing dries.
4
Let the icing dry
The icing will harden to a soft but stackable glaze within 2 to 3 hours of sitting out at room temperature. Once it's set, stack the cookies between layers of parchment paper in an airtight container and keep them on the counter for up to a week. Skip the freezer once they're iced. I've tried it, and this icing cracks and loses its shine. It's still tasty, just not pretty.
SuGar Cookie Icing protips
WATCH Me Make Iced Sugar cookies
📖 Recipe
Easy Sugar Cookie Icing Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2-4 tablespoons milk
- 1 tablespoon light corn syrup or honey see notes
- 1 teaspoon vanilla, almond, peppermint, or coconut extract
- Food coloring
Instructions
- Mix the icing. Whisk together the powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons of milk, corn syrup or honey, and extract until smooth. Add more milk until the icing reaches the consistency you want. For piping and spreading, you want it thicker. For dipping, make it a little thinner.
- Color the icing. If using food coloring, whisk it in until well distributed. For more than one color, divide the icing into smaller bowls first.
- Decorate the cookies. Pipe, spread, or dip the icing onto completely cooled cookies. If you'd like sprinkles, add them before the icing dries.
- Let the icing dry. Let the cookies sit at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours, until the icing is set.
Video
Notes
- Using corn syrup in the cookie icing recipe will result in an icing that dries soft, but stackable. Using honey will result in a softer icing that should not be stacked because it stays sticky.
- Let the cookies cool completely before icing, or the icing will run.
- For dipping, make the icing thinner. For piping, thicker, since it loosens as it warms in your hand. For a squeeze bottle, just thin enough to flow through the tip without running freely. For spreading, quite thick.
- Gel food coloring gives bolder color and doesn't thin out the icing.
- The icing hardens in about 2 to 3 hours at room temperature.
- This icing doesn't keep well, since it's made to harden. Mix it when you're ready to decorate or keep it in an airtight container.
- Store iced cookies between layers of parchment paper in an airtight container on the counter for up to a week.
- Don't freeze the iced cookies. The icing cracks and loses its shine.
- Non-dairy milk works just fine in this recipe.
- Looking for a sugar cookie recipe to use this icing on? This cut-out cookie recipe is our go-to, fan-favorite recipe.
Nutrition
Frequently Asked Questions about FROSTING SUGAR COOKIES
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Great frosting recipe. Cookies stack great without the super hard royal icing. Taste great too! I just wish I was a better cookie decorator ☹️
Yay! So glad you loved the frosting. It's one of our faves!
I tried your recipe today and it was so easy peasy. My husband loved using the squeeze bottle to outline and flood each cookie. In 60 minutes 4 dozen Christmas cookies are ready for our grandkids. I am sharing this recipe with friends. Thank you
and Merry Christmas.
Woohoo! The squeeze bottle is such a pro hack that makes things a breeze. Hope you had a Merry Christmas!
Used this last year for my very first try at making sugar cookies. It was yummy and so very easy to use and make! My teenage Sunday school class and I made Easter cookies and they loved the icing. This year my little kids Sunday school class is making Christmas cookies and using the icing again.
Did just what I wanted it to.....without meriange!,
Icing is lovely and a quick go to when you don’t want to use royal icing.
Hi Cassie,
Can I make this nondairy?
Non-dairy milk should work just fine!
Lovely icing! It was really thick and looked unpromising at first, but I only added 2 tablespoons of milk, so that was the problem. They said you can do it with corn syrup or honey, but maple syrup is another great alternative!
Can you make this dough ahead of time and put it in the fridge for a 2-3 days? Can you also do the same with your frosting recipe?
Hi Alexandra! You can definitely make the dough ahead—we recommend stashing it in the fridge overnight or no more than a few days, otherwise it's best to freeze it until you need it. But the icing isn't great for making ahead. It's designed to harden, so no matter how you store it, it's going to start hardening on you. The good news is it's super easy to mix it up when you need it because it doesn't take long to make at all!
Hi there! I'm having a cookie-decorating party. The cookies will already be baked, so this is just the decorating part. Can I make the icing a few days before and put it in bottles? I'm curious if it will harden in the bottles.
I've used store-bought icing in the past, but I'm trying to avoid that this year!
Hi Jessica! This type of icing is made to harden. That’s super great when you want to stack your cookies but less great for making the icing ahead! No matter how you store it, it will eventually harden and be unusable. But the good news is that the recipe is super quick to mix up, so whipping up a batch or two when you're ready to decorate shouldn't dampen the party vibes!
Your post states an option without corn syrup... but I'm still trying to find it! Or do I use the recipe you give but just leave it out?
Hi Vanessa! That info is in a Wholefully Protip box in the post, as well as the recipe card (in the ingredients list and notes). I'm copying the Protip here for you so you don't have to go searching! "For sugar cookie icing without corn syrup, replace the corn syrup with honey. The decorated cookies will not be stackable, but the iced cookies will be delicious and corn syrup-free!"
Can I make the icing ahead of time? If so, how would I store it? Thanks!
Hi Haylie! Hopefully, you checked out the comments to get this sorted, but this type of icing is made to harden. That's super great when you want to stack your cookies but less great for making the icing ahead! No matter how you store it, it will eventually harden and be unusable. But the good news is that it's easy-peasy to mix up a batch when it's time to decorate, so it's usually not a big deal that it can't be made ahead!