2 Ingredient Cookie Icing (Egg Free)

My simple 2 ingredient cookie icing is a quick, fuss free way to decorate your cookies! It’s perfect for beginners or when you’re short on time because its made by mixing together just 2 simple ingredients: powdered sugar and milk. It sets with a smooth, matter finish that’s firm enough for details but soft enough to bite into.

Hey team! Coming in today with a super simple cookie icing recipe that I’m excited to use. I have a royal icing recipe on the blog which is great for when you want something that sets rock hard. I use it on my gingerbread cookies which makes it more nostalgic. This cookie sets firm, but still soft enough to bite into. That’s probably my favorite thing about it. I also love how versatile it is to use!

You can use it to create intricate, layered designs on your cookies. I love doing this at Christmas time. Its so much fun getting creative with designs. And it colors well too, so the sky’s the limit when it comes to how you decorate your cookies with it.

In this post I want to take you through:

• How to make it
• How to make it thick for intricate details.
• How to flood your cookies
• Getting layered 3D effects
• How to color it

Seriously, this icing is amazing. For something so simple to make, it tastes great when you flavor it with vanilla extract. Kind of like vanilla fondant, but better. Let’s get stuck into all the things I want you to know about this icing and how to make it!

Egg Free Cookie Icing VS Royal Icing

Theres a couple different types of icings you can make to decorate your cookies. out there. The most common one is Royal icing, then there’s this more simple version, which happens to be egg free.

This cookie icing uses 2 ingredients, milk + sugar. Once you mix them together, the only thing left to do is get creative with your designs. You can thin it out with more milk to dip your cookies into for a quick decorating technique or make it thicker with a little more sugar for more intricate designs.

Royal icing uses egg whites and sugar as its main ingredients. The egg whites help it set rock hard. Don’t worry, nobodies breaking teeth here, your cookies will still be edible. It’s a classic option and is more commonly used to glue together gingerbread houses. I use it to decorate my gingerbread cookies for a more authentic feeling cookie.

So why would you choose this cookie icing over royal icing? Simplicity, it’s egg free and it sets firm but not hard which makes it softer to bite into!

TIP: Measuring your ingredients using kitchen scales means it’s easy to scale your icing up or down if you need larger amounts for large batch holiday cookie baking.

Ingredients Needed to make RECIPE

• Powdered sugar – This is the base of the recipe. It’s what gives it structure. I used soft icing sugar which has corn starch in it which is fine to use. You can use pure icing sugar as well. Make sure you sift the icing sugar first. Nobody wants lumpy icing.
• Milk – I used whole cows milk. How much you use is going to dictate how thick or thin your icing is which can be used for different types of decorating.
• Vanilla extract (optional) – this is optional, but I like the flavor it ads. You can use things like essences or extracts if you like. You can skip it if you like.
• Food gel colorings (optional) – this is what’s going to give you bright, vibrant icing colors. Don’t use liquid food dye, it will thin your icing out. Food gel colorings are the way to go. I used chefmaster. And just a heads up, use a very small amount to begin with, mix it, then add a little more if you need it.

Step-By-Step Walkthrough

• Run your powdered sugar through a sieve into a large mixing bowl.
• Add the milk and mix using a hand whisk. Just be gentle with your whisking. We’re not aiming to add air bubbles into the icing.

• The icing will come off the whisk and be able to hold its shape in a stream on top of the rest of the icing for about 5-6 seconds before it dissolves.

TIP: Avoid adding air bubbles to your icing by not mixing too vigorously, otherwise they’ll show up on your cookies.

Coloring your icing is easy!

• Separate your icing into separate micing bowls. Add a small dab of food gel.
• Mix until well combined. Then if you want it darker, add more. It’s better to go slow and add a little rather than too much and end up with a darker color.

TIP: Add only a very small amount of food coloring and mix. A little goes a long way and if you add too much the color will end up being darker than you’d like.

What consistency should your icing be?

Let’s talk consistency. The texture and how thick or thin your icing is, is going to dictate how you can use it to decorate your cookies. Thicker icing is great for intricate details, thinner icing is a great way to quickly dip the top of your cookies to decorate quickly.

To make your icing thicker (intricate details) – For this recipe, you’ll need to add just 50g more powdered sugar, mix it into the icing and you’re good to go! It’ll be the same consistency as toothpaste and it’ll give you cleaner, more defined results.

For thinner icing – add just a small splash of milk and mix. It should flow like honey. You’ll be able to dip the top of your cookies in the icing, let excess icing drip off and then let them before letting them dry. The key here is to add small amounts of milk. If your icing becomes too thin, just add a little more powdered sugar. That’s the great thing about this icing, it’s very forgiving!

How To Decorate Your Cookies

Let’s get to the fun part, decorating! The best cookies to use for this icing recipe are flat cookies like my Vanilla Sugar Cookies! They hold their shape which means you can use any cookie cutter shape you like!

Flooding your cookies

• ‘Flooding’ means piping a perimeter of icing on your cookie, then ‘flooding’ the middle with more icing. Piping that perimeter first means the icing won’t go out of that shape that you piped.
• Add your icings to piping bags. I fit the end of mine with small round piping tips. I usually use the #2, #3 and #4 piping tips. For this technique, I’d use a #3 to pipe and flood.

• Once you’re happy with the shape, flood the cookie with more icing. Give the cookie a shake to help the icing even out, then let it dry for 4 hours.

Timing the layers for 3D designs

For my Christmas cookies I wanted to have a layered 3D effect. So a nice flat green Christmas tree, then black string with Christmas lights on top. It’s easy to get this type of effect, you just let the first layer dry completely before adding the next layer. If you pipe everything on top of an already wet layer, it will all meld in as one layer. You’ll still keep your details, it just won’t be 3D, which isn’t a bad look. Experiment with both and have fun with it!

How To Store Left Over Cookie Icing

Store it in an airtight container, or a bowl covered with plastic wrap to stop it developing a crust. It’s good for a day or two. When you’re ready to use it, give it a stir to left smoothen it out again. Sometimes if can thicken as it sits. You can also store it in your piping bags. Just seal the ends with clips to stop the icing oozing out.

Storing decorated cookies

Once you’ve used this icing to decorate your cookies, let the icing set completely, about 24 hours should do it. I usually just let the cookies set for at least 4 hours, then cover with a tea towel on the baking tray to dry completely overnight. Once dried completely, store them in an airtight container for up to a week in a cool dry spot.

What is this recipe in grams and not cups?

The short answer is accuracy! It is far easier, more accurate and you get more consistency results when you measure ingredients by weight, especially in dessert and bread baking! I wrote all about this in my post about using digital kitchen scales!

Tried this recipe and loved it? Awesome! Drop me a comment below and tell me about it! Can’t wait to hear how it turned out for you! You can also keep up to date with me during the week by joining me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest!