royal icing

Black Royal Icing

October 7, 2022 By Ashley Leave a Comment

Making black royal icing, or any black icing or frosting for that matter can be huge headache. In this post, I’ll show you how to make a cocoa powder based black royal icing with minimal (a drop or two tops) added gel color AND how to make black royal icing with gel color only with not as much color as you may be used to using. With my tips, you can make black royal icing WITHOUT adding loads of color, tastes amazing and also won’t stain teeth and hands.

Black Cocoa Powder vs Black Gel Food Color

Black Cocoa Powder

One of the best way to achieve a dark black icing color with out using a lot of gel color is to start by using cocoa powder. With my method, only using a small amount of cocoa powder, you won’t end up with chocolate flavored icing. It will have a cocoa taste, but it won’t be enough to make it a full chocolate flavor.

You may have seen how other creators will start their royal icing with a Dutch processed cocoa, like Hershey’s to color their icing brown first, before adding black gel color, which allows them to achieve a darker black color faster than if they had started coloring the icing from white first. This is also the method to use if you want chocolate flavored icing.

For my black royal icing cocoa powder method, we’re starting with BLACK cocoa powder. The same black cocoa powder that you would be used for an Oreo or an ice cream sandwich. This unsweetened cocoa powder is black, and very Dutched, or heavily alkalized. I use this cocoa powder to make my black cocoa sugar cookies, which I also used for these Halloween bat cookies.

coloring black royal icing and achieving correct consistency, outlining bat cookies — (Top left: royal icing colored with black cocoa on top, royal icing colored with Americolor black on bottom)
(Top right photo: royal icing made with cocoa powder, at the right consistency for piping)

Black Gel Food Coloring

Not all gel food color acts the same, so it’s important to start with a good brand that makes a true black color. Oftentimes black food coloring can have undertones, usually green or purple, so that when you go to color your icing, its black-ish with a green or purple tint. Brands like Americolor and Chefmaster tend to be a consistent true black color. Avoid Wilton black in the tubs, as it usually has a dominant green undertone but Wilton’s Color Right black is great to use.

How to make Black Royal Icing – Cocoa Powder Method

For every 3 cups of you will need 2 tablespoons of black cocoa powder. You can add as much as 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder. I mention this because different brands of cocoa powder can vary in color/potency based on the brand. Mix the cocoa powder with equal parts warm water to create a paste. So, 2 tablespoon of cocoa powder to 2 tablespoons of warm water and so on.

Mix the black cocoa mixture into the icing a little at a time, until it is all incorporated. Let the icing sit, covered, in airtight container, for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, check the color. It should be black. If your icing is not dark enough, add a bit more of the chocolate paste, or 2 drops of black food color. Let the icing sit, covered in airtight container for an a couple hours before using.

flooding cookie with icing and sprinkling sugar on cookie

How to make Black Royal Icing – Gel Food Color Method

For every 3 cups of icing, I find that 1 – 1 1/2 teaspoons of black gel color (depending on the brand) is enough for a true, dark black. Stir in the color, and let the color sit for a few hours or overnight. Letting the color sit will allow the color to be fully emulsified into the icing, and it will darken as it sits.

How to make Halloween Bat Cookies

Prepare the icing: I use the same icing consistency (15-20 second icing) to outline and fill in my cookies. It’s solid enough to not run off the cookie, but thin enough to evenly fill the cookies.
Thin out the icing with a few drops of water at a time until a toothpick or spatula that is ran through the icing creates a line that fills up and flattens out within 15-20 seconds. For this consistency, the icing has to be thin enough to flow, while remaining thick enough that it doesn’t fall off the side of the cookie.
Thicken the icing by adding a teaspoon of powdered sugar at a time until a toothpick or spatula that is ran through the icing creates a line that fills up and flattens out within 15-20 seconds.
Fit a piping bag with a #2 piping tip. Fill the bag, about 2/3 full, with prepared icing.

Outline the cookies with icing.
Fill the cookies with icing.
Use a scribe tool or a toothpick to even out the icing and pop any air bubbles.
Jiggle the cookie gently to help even out the icing.
While the icing is still wet, sprinkle black sanding sugar over the cookie, making sure the sugar is covering the entire cookie. Let the cookie sit for a minute or two.
Lift up the cookie and gently shake off the excess sugar. Use a scribe tool or a toothpick to remove any stray sugar crystals.
Let the cookies dry completely before packaging or serving.

Tips for Perfect Icing

The color will darken as it sits. When making dark or very vibrant colors, let the icing sit overnight for it to fully develop its color.
Use only concentrated food color. Do not use liquid food color as it is not concentrated color.
If you have left over royal icing in different colors from previous projects, you can combine them together, then add black color.
Before using black gel color, smell it. If it smells chemical-like, it will taste bad too.
Store the icing in an airtight container. If it gets any crusty bits around the edges, remove them with a damp paper towel. You don’t want those to get into your icing.

If you make this black royal icing for any of your baking projects, let me know! Drop a comment below or tag me on Instagram.

Enjoy!

Ash xx

For more decorated cookies, check out these recipes:

Easy Halloween Ghost Sugar Cookies

Black Cocoa Cut Out Sugar Cookies + Decorated Jack O Lanterns

Watercolor Red Velvet Sugar Cookies

Snowflake Sugar Cookies

Matcha Sugar Cookies + Decorated Witch’s cauldrons

black royal icing and sanding sugar bat close up

Print Recipe

No ratings yet

Black Royal Icing

Black royal icing made with black cocoa powder, or black gel food color

Prep Time10 mins

Resting Time1 hr

Course: Dessert

Keyword: black royal icing, cookie icing, decorated cookies, royal icing

Servings: cups

Equipment

Ingredients

Royal Icing

4 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons meringue powder
4 tablespoons warm water
2 teaspoons light corn syrup
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Black Royal Icing with Black Cocoa Powder

2-3 tablespoons black cocoa powder
2-3 tablespoons warm water

Black Royal Icing with Black Gel Color

1 – 1½ teaspoons true black concentrated gel color

Instructions

Royal Icing

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the confectioner's sugar and meringue powder.
Add the warm water, corn syrup and vanilla extract.
Beat on low until everything is blended. Turn the mixer to medium-high speed and mix until the icing forms stiff, glossy peaks, about 5-7 minutes.

Black Royal Icing with Black Cocoa Powder

Mix the cocoa powder with the water to make a paste.
Mix the black cocoa mixture into the icing a little at a time, until it is all incorporated. Let the icing sit, covered, in airtight container, for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, check the color. It should be black. If your icing is not dark enough, add a bit more of the chocolate paste, or 2 drops of black food color. Let the icing sit, covered in airtight container for an hour before using.

Black Royal icing with Black Gel Color

Mix in black gel color, starting with the lowest amount first. Let the icing sit for a few hours to develop color before adding additional color. It will darken as it sits.

Watercolor Red Velvet Sugar Cookies

February 11, 2022 By Ashley Leave a Comment

I LOVE these cookies. They’re just so, so pretty. My watercolor red velvet sugar cookies are super delicious (hello, red velvet in cookie form), but they are super easy to make, with minimal supplies and they make awesome gifts. Decorate these for Valentine’s Day for your loved ones, or switch it up and make them for the holidays with the cookie cutter of your choice.

Red Velvet Sugar Cut Out Cookies

This cookie has all the flavor of red velvet cake in sugar cookie form. This recipe is similar to my go-to sugar cookie recipe, but with the addition of cream cheese, cocoa powder and red gel food coloring. This recipe comes together fast and easily, and can be made in advance and frozen. Bonus, especially if you’re planning on making a lot of cookies.

Room temperature butter and cream cheese is beaten with sugar until just combined. An egg, red gel color, and vanilla are mixed in, followed by flour, cocoa powder and salt. Be sure to beat the butter and sugar together until *just* combined. No need for “light and fluffy” for these cookies. Incorporating air during the beating process contributes to spread as it causes the cookies to puff up and deflate and spread while baking. Chilling the dough before baking is also an important step to help keep the cookies from spreading.

The thinner you roll and cut out the cookies, the more crisp they will be. I like to roll my dough out to about 1/4″ thick to make sure they’re softer towards the center, and crispy on the outside. Once you cut out the cookies, they need to be chilled. Chilling is important with sugar cookies as it helps them retain their shape. Once the cookies have been chilled throughly, they are then baked and cooled.

Royal Icing

While the cookies are cooling, make the royal icing. I decorated my cookies with my go-to royal icing. This recipe is slightly different from some recipes because it contains corn syrup, which gives the icing a bit of shine when it dries, but also gives it a bit more elasticity when when piping. Additionally, it helps the royal icing to be a bit softer and not as rock hard when it’s dried.

I used the same icing consistency (15-20 second icing) to outline and fill in my cookies. Thin out stiff royal icing with a few drops of water at a time until a toothpick or spatula that is ran through the icing creates a line that fills up and flattens out within 15-20 seconds. For this consistency, the icing has to be thin enough to flow, while remaining thick enough that it doesn’t fall off the side of the cookie. Pipe a border around the perimeter of the cookie and fill it in. Let the royal icing dry completely before painting.

Watercolor Paints

To make my watercolor paints, I used edible powder colors. You can certainly use gel color if you like, but I like the powder color because of more color options and the color dissolves better. Make a paint by adding vodka to the color until you reach the desired color. Test the color by dipping the clean paintbrush into the watercolor paint and paint a stripe on a paper towel. Make any adjustments, like adding more color to make the color darker, or adding more vodka to make the color lighter.

Instead of using paintbrushes for this project, I used cosmetic sponges. I find that they apply the color more evenly and blend the colors better. I think there is better control over the application of the color better with the sponges. Use a separate sponge for each color used. This technique will work with brushes in a pinch. Be sure to not saturate the brushes with too much paint and dab rather than painting strokes.

Watercolor Effect Tutorial

Work with the lightest color up to the darkest color. The watercolor effect is achieved by layering and building color. With the cosmetic sponge, dab on lightest color over the surface of the cookie.
Repeat with the second lightest color.
Repeat with the next color, and proceeding colors. I used 4 colors but you can use as many as you would like.
Dab the darkest color on to the cookie. Use a clean sponge to blend the darker color into the rest of the watercolor design.

Use a clean paintbrush (used for food only) to clean up and dab a bit of color around the perimeter of the cookie to make sure all the white of the royal icing is covered.
Leave to dry for 15 minutes.
For the gold splatter, measure out a 1/2 teaspoon of edible gold dust powder. Add 2 – 3 drops of vodka and mix until you have a thick but liquid paint.
Saturate a clean paintbrush (used for food only) and with a gloved hand, pull the bristles back with your thumb, release the bristles and flick the paint onto the cookies. Repeat a couple times until you like the way the gold splatter looks.
Leave to dry completely before packaging or serving.

If you make these watercolor red velvet sugar cookies, let me know! Drop a comment or tag me on Instagram. I love seeing your bakes and creations.

Enjoy!

Ash xx

For more decorated cookie recipes, check out these posts:

Matcha Sugar Cookies

Black Cocoa Sugar Cookies + Decorated Pumpkins Tutorial

Snowflake Sugar Cookies

Tutorial: Speckled Egg Cookies

Print Recipe

No ratings yet

Red Velvet Sugar Cookies

Red velvet sugar cut out cookies

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time17 mins

Chill1 hr

Total Time1 hr 27 mins

Course: Dessert

Servings: cookies (3″)

Ingredients

2 ¾ cups (330g) all purpose flour
1/4 cup (21g) cocoa powder, natural
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
3/4 cup (227g) unsalted butter, room temperature
4 oz (114g) cream cheese
1 cup (198g) granulated sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 teaspoons red gel food color

Instructions

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter, cream cheese and sugar until thoroughly combined.
Add the egg, followed by the vanilla extract and red gel color, beating until just combined.
Scrape down the bowl. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the flour/cocoa mixture and beat until just combined.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface sprinkled lightly with flour. Pat the dough into a disc shape.
Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Heat the oven to 350F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Place the chilled dough on a work surface that has been sprinkled with flour. Sprinkle the top of the dough and the rolling pin lightly with flour to prevent any sticking.
Roll out the dough to 1/8-3/8" thick, depending on your preference, rotating the dough as you roll to prevent the dough from sticking. If the dough is sticking, you can roll the dough between 2 pieces of parchment or wax paper.
Cut out desired shapes and place the cookies 2" apart on the cookie sheets.
Place the cookie sheets into the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill.
Bake the cookies for 16-18 minutes. Rotate the cookie sheets, halfway through baking. You're looking for the cookies to be soft when touched in the center, but fully cooked. Baking the cookies longer will result in a crispier cookie while baking them to just cooked will keep them soft.
Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheets for 10 minutes, before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Matcha Sugar Cookies + Decorated Halloween Cauldron

October 13, 2021 By Ashley Leave a Comment

I love a good sugar cookie, especially one that actually tastes good, and doesn’t spread all over the place when baking. I’ve shared recipes for my go-to sugar cookie recipe and my black cocoa sugar cookies, so today I am sharing with you my matcha sugar cookie recipe. It tastes amazing AND doesn’t spread when baking. I love matcha. It’s earthy, with a hint of sweetness and umami flavor. Really though, it’s hard to explain what makes matcha so appealing and tasty, but it is. My matcha sugar cookies are earthy, just sweet enough, with a hint of almond to compliment the green tea.

When making these cookies, I thought, what better way to highlight a green cookie than with a Halloween theme decoration. So, I went with a witchy cauldron cookie with glowy green potion bubbles with some sugar eyeballs, bones and sprinkles.

Now, if you’ve been to my blog before, you know that royal icing cookie decorating is not my strongest skill nor am I overly patient with the process. So for these cookies, I kept it easy. You will need:

a cauldron cookie cutter

15 second royal icing – black, white and bright green

a scribe tool or a toothpick

#1 and #2 piping tips

piping bags

I wanted to give the cauldrons a used, beat up look just to kind of make them look old and witchy. I outlined the cauldron shape on the cookie with royal icing. Then I gave the cauldron some “feet” to stand on. I filled in the outlines right away with black royal icing, leaving some areas more sparse than others. This will give the icing an uneven look when they’re completely filled in with icing. If you want a more solid look not-so-banged-up look, flood the cookie evenly and wiggle it back and forth on your work surface to even out the icing.

While the black was drying, I made icing eyeballs and bones with white royal icing. You can buy both sugar bones and eyeballs at the craft store during Halloween if you want to keep things simple. To make them yourself, pipe different small sized rounds on a parchment paper. You want to keep them small but varying in size. Let them dry completely, then use an edible marker or gel food color to paint the black centers. To make the bones, use a #1 tip to pipe a “Y” shape, then pipe an upside down “V” on the bottom of the Y.

For the potion bubbles, I used a #2 piping tip and piped various sized dots along the top area of the cookie. Be sure the dots do not touch otherwise they will run together. Wait for the dots to crust over and dry a bit, then add a second layer. Repeat this step 2 or 3 more times. While the dots are still wet, place the eyeballs and the bones, then the sprinkles. Let the cookies dry completely before storing and packaging.

If you make these matcha sugar cookies or use this decorated cauldron tutorial, let me know! Drop a comment or tag me on Instagram. I love seeing your bakes and creations.

Enjoy!

Ash xx

For more decorated cookie recipes, check out these posts:

Black Cocoa Sugar Cookies + Decorated Pumpkins Tutorial

Snowflake Sugar Cookies

Tutorial: Speckled Egg Cookies

Print Recipe

No ratings yet

Matcha Sugar Cookies

Matcha green tea flavored sugar cut out cookies

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Chill1 hr

Total Time1 hr 30 mins

Course: Dessert

Servings: -14 large cookies

Ingredients

2 ½ cups (312g) all purpose flour
2 tablespoons matcha tea
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
⅛ teaspoon almond extract
1/2 batch prepared royal icing

Instructions

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, matcha and salt until combined. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugar until thoroughly combined.
Add the egg, followed by the vanilla and almond extracts beating until just combined.
Scrape down the bowl. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the flour and beat until just combined.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface sprinkled lightly with confectioner's sugar. Pat the dough into a disc shape.
Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Place the chilled dough on a work surface that has been sprinkled with confectioner's sugar. Sprinkle the top of the dough and the rolling pin lightly with confectioner's sugar to prevent any sticking.
Roll out the dough to 1/8-3/8" thick, depending on your preference, rotating the dough as you roll to prevent the dough from sticking.
Cut out desired shapes and place the cookies 2" apart on the cookie sheets.
Place the cookie sheets into the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes to chill.
Bake the cookies for 17-20 minutes. Rotate the cookie sheets, halfway through baking. You're looking for the cookies to be soft when touched in the center, but fully cooked. Baking the cookies longer will result in a crispier cookie while baking them to just cooked will keep them soft.
Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheets for 10 minutes, before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Notes

Matcha sugar cookie dough will keep in the refrigerator for up to three days. Dough can be frozen for up to three months.

Easy Watercolor Flowers Cake Tutorial

August 31, 2021 By Ashley Leave a Comment

If you’ve seen any of my cake tutorials, you know that I love using stamps on cakes. You can stamp outlines, or create impressions with stamps and can feature a wide variety of techniques. My easy watercolor flowers cake features techniques like watercolor painting, royal icing detail, impressing fondant and more that is easy, quick to decorate and perfect for all skill levels. If you’re like me and you have shaky hands, or can’t paint freehand to save your life, then this tutorial is for you.

Stamps and Cake Decorating

I used square tiers for this cake and paneled them. It’s much easier to impress fondant before it is on the cake. This allows you to make an even impression and lessons the risk of stamping too hard and ripping the fondant. You can use any stamps you prefer. I always tend to use floral stamps, particularly from Iron Orchid Designs. I use these all the time. They’re durable, food safe, and super high quality. The stamp I use is called Peonies by IOD, but use any stamp that you love.

The Bottom Tier

To make the coral color fondant, I used Americolor orange and electric pink in a 2:1 ratio. I dusted sugar peonies to match. Firmly impress the tier with the stamp, but not too hard that the stamp pushes through the fondant. To define the lines and design, I used a soft gold luster dust mixed with Everclear alcohol to paint in the impressed lines.

Watercolor Painting

The part I love about watercolor painting is that there is not right or wrong way to do it. I used gel food color – the same Americolor orange and electric pink that I used for the fondant as well as Americolor gold (yellow) for the center of the peonies. I mixed the colors with alcohol to make a thin, liquid-y paint. The goal is to add color gradually, so you do want to aim for a more watery, not too pigmented paint. I alternated between the orange and pink, layering color, until I was happy with the results. For the best results, leave some parts of the watercolor flowers light, some darker. Variation looks this best for this design. For the center of the flowers, I used the gold/yellow watercolor, and a bit of the orange watercolor paint.

Royal Icing Outline

To really emphasize the stamped detail, I outlined the stamp lines with royal icing. Don’t try to make the lines perfect. Keep them a bit messy and ragged looking. I think this makes them look a bit more realistic rather than sharp and perfect piping. This technique is perfect for non-pipers or inexperienced pipers. When the royal icing dried, I used the same soft gold luster dust and alcohol that I used for the bottom tier to paint over the lines. Again, if the paint is uneven or messy, totally ok and fits this style of cake.

To finish the cake, I added some coral colored peonies and buds.

If you use this easy watercolor flowers cake tutorial, let me know! Drop a comment or tag me on Instagram. I love seeing your creations.

Enjoy!

Ash xx

For more cake tutorials, check out these posts:

Floral Piped Royal Icing Cake Tutorial

Under the Sea Cake Tutorial

Halloween Mummy Cake Tutorial

Halloween Rice Paper Ghosts Tutorial

October 20, 2020 By Ashley 7 Comments

Rice paper sails are super popular on cakes these days. Understandably so, as they really add a lot of movement and an ethereal feel to a cake design. If you haven’t used rice paper for cake decorating, you may have still heard of rice paper elsewhere – perhaps in the form spring rolls. For this tutorial, the same rice paper used to make spring rolls will be used to make these translucent Halloween ghosts. Luckily, rice paper can be found in most grocery stores and is fairly inexpensive. These Halloween rice paper ghosts are really easy to make, are a super cute addition on Halloween cakes and cupcakes, and and require very few supplies.

Supplies

–rice paper

-a small spray bottle filled with cold water

-non-stick mats/silicone mats

–black edible marker

-styrofoam cake dummy

-straight pins

-lollipop sticks

–clear isomalt

About rice paper

Rice paper is easy to shape when wet, becoming stretchy and a bit sticky, and dries hard. Rice paper is commonly used in making rice paper sails for cakes, which is a similar technique, but shaped different. Usually, when making rice paper sails, the rice paper is submerged into water for a bit to thoroughly saturate it before shaping it. I find that method makes the paper too wet and more prone to ripping. With my method, the paper is moistened little by little until it’s pliable, and easy to shape.

stretchy rice paper ready to be shaped into ghosts

How to make rice paper ghosts

Lay a piece of rice paper onto the mat. Spray the paper with water, using your hand to rub the water into the paper to soften it and help the paper absorb the water.
Flip the paper over and repeat. Keep flipping the paper and spraying with water until it is a bit elastic, softened and you can no longer see any texture.

shaping rice paper ghosts on a non stick mat

Carefully lift the rice paper from the mat.
Shape the paper into a ghost-like shape back onto the mat, tapering off the top and bottom but leaving the center wider to appear more billowy. You can also shape some so that just the bottom tapers, leaving the rest of the ghost billowy.
Leave the ghosts to dry until they holds their shape but are still a bit pliable, about 4-6 hours.

I wanted some of the ghosts to have some movement and curve slightly, sort of like they’re flying, so while they’re still pliable, the ghosts can be shaped.

Curve the ghost around a foam cake dummy in the desired shape. Stabilize the shape by securing the ghost with pins. Let the ghost dry completely, overnight.

shaping the semi dry rice paper ghosts on foam to give them a curved shape

Attaching the ghosts to the cake

When the ghosts have dried, usually 8 hours, preferably overnight, they can be decorated. They should be hard, like plastic, with no damp spots. I kept my ghosts super simple by drawing on eyes and an open mouth with a black edible marker. You can definitely get as detailed as you like. For more depth and for the ghosts to stand out a little better, you can use a gray colored petal dust to dust in the crevices of the ghost.

To attach the ghosts to the cake, I used clear isomalt attached to paper lollipop sticks adhered to the back of the ghosts. This makes the ghosts more stable and secure and also allows them to have more of a 3D look, sort of popping off the cake a bit.

After heating the isomalt according to packaged instructions, dip the end of a lollipop stick to coat. Be careful when working with isomalt as it is incredibly hot.

Adhere the isomalt stick to the back of the ghost, preferably where the paper bunches, to make the stick less visible from the front of the ghost.

Hold the stick in place to dry a bit, then leave the isomalt to cool completely.

When the isomalt has cooled, attach the ghosts to the cake by inserting the lollipop sticks into the cake. I recommend inserting them into a cold cake because they will be much more secure, and less prone to falling out or sinking. I overlapped my ghosts and have them facing alternating directions.

I hope you find loads of creative ways to use these super cute, super easy Halloween rice paper ghosts. If you make these ghosts, tag me on Instagram. I’d love to see them!

Ash xx

For more Halloween tutorials, check out these posts:

Halloween Wafer Paper Mummy Cake Tutorial

Black Cocoa Cut Out Sugar Cookies

Halloween Sprinkles Cakesicles

Easy Halloween Ghost Sugar Cookies

Black Cocoa Sugar Cookies + Decorated Pumpkins Tutorial

October 13, 2020 By Ashley 3 Comments

Black cocoa is a magical ingredient. It’s not an ingredient that is too common to home bakers, but is definitely one to keep in the pantry. Black cocoa powder creates really dark, and chocolatey baked goods. It’s perfect for making black buttercream, blackout cakes, and these black cocoa sugar cookies. These sugar cookies have an intense black color, delicious cocoa flavor, hold their shape when baking and are the perfect black canvas for Halloween cookies, like these decorated pumpkin and Jack O’Lantern cookies.

What is black cocoa?

There are two types of cocoa we use most often for baking – Dutch process and natural. Natural cocoa powder is the most common, most likely the cocoa powder grandma baked with. It’s the most natural of cocoa powders, hence its name. Natural cocoa powder is lighter in color and used in recipes with baking soda, where the acid in the cocoa is neutralized, enhancing the cocoa flavor.

Dutch processed cocoa powder is alkalized to reduce the acidity. It makes the cocoa powder darker, smoother and more mild in flavor. This type of cocoa powder does not need baking soda to neutralize, so it is commonly used in recipes with baking powder.

Black cocoa powder is similar to Dutch process, except that it is heavily alkalized. It’s the same powder used to make Oreos, so that should give you an idea of color and taste. It’s deep and bittersweet in flavor, though, depending on the recipe, black cocoa is often used in conjunction with another cocoa powder to give the baked good more of a balanced, multi-faceted chocolate flavor.

How do you make black cocoa sugar cookies?

This sugar cookie is similar to my go-to sugar cookie recipe, but with the addition of black cocoa. Note that not a lot of black cocoa is used in this recipe. It doesn’t take much to make these cookies black and the flavor strong enough. My favorite brand of black cocoa to use is by King Arthur Flour. This recipe comes together fast and easily, and can be made in advance and frozen. Bonus, especially if you’re planning on making a lot of cookies.

Room temperature butter is beaten with sugar until just combined. A room temperature egg and vanilla are mixed in, followed by black cocoa powder, salt and flour. Be sure to just beat your butter and sugar together until combined. No need for “light and fluffy” for these cookies. Incorporating air during the beating process contributes to spread as it causes the cookies to puff up and deflate and spread while baking. Chilling the dough before baking is also an important step to help keep the cookies from spreading.

Keep in mind the thinner you roll and cut out the cookies, the more crispy they will be. I like to roll my dough out to about 1/4″ thick to make sure they’re softer towards the center, and crispy on the outside.

About the icing

I decorated the cookies with my go-to royal icing. My royal icing is a bit unique because it contains corn syrup, which gives the icing a bit of shine when it dries, but also gives it a bit more elasticity when when piping. Additionally, it helps the royal icing to be a bit softer and not as rock hard when it’s dried.

I used Artisan Accents colors to color my icing. I used orange and a little bit of brown for the pumpkin color. The brown tames down the brightness of the orange a bit and gives it more of a true pumpkin color. I used the same brown gel color for the pumpkin stem along with a little bit of black to make a darker brown. I used leaf green and a smidge of black for the vines.

I used the same icing consistency (15-20 second icing) to outline and fill in my cookies. Color your icing the desired color. Then thin out stiff royal icing with a few drops of water at a time until a toothpick or spatula that is ran through the icing creates a line that fills up and flattens out within 15-20 seconds. For this consistency, the icing has to be thin enough to flow, while remaining thick enough that it doesn’t fall off the side of the cookie.

Tips on how to make Jack O’Lantern and Pumpkin decorated cookies:

Well, I’ll admit it, I made a mistake while making these cookies, and instead of remaking them, I decided I’m going to share with you my mistake so you can see what should be done differently. You can see in the photo (the third photo from the top) that alternating parts of the cookies are filled in with icing, which is the correct thing to BUT I outlined the cookies entirely first. This gave the outline time to dry, so that when the icing is filled in, it isn’t able to blend in and look cohesive. Instead you’re left with defined lines. These are easier to see on the Jack O’Lantern cookies. I iced over the outlines of the eyes, nose and mouth to hide the mess, but…well… it it what it is.

– Since these cookies are so dark, tracing a design onto the cookies to pipe over with an edible marker isn’t really an option, unless you have a white marker. Instead, use a scribe tool to etch your design into the cookies.

– Outline and fill alternate sections and allow the sections to set before outlining and filling the remaining two sections. Be sure to pipe the outline of the eyes, nose and mouth for the Jack O’Lantern’s as you go

– For the stems, I used a small star tip and brown royal icing to give them more a stem-like texture.

– I used #2 piping tips for outlining and filling in, as well as for the vines.

– Let the cookies dry until set before piping on the vines, then the stems.

I hope you enjoy these black cocoa sugar cookies! If you make any decorated cookies with this recipe, tag me on Instagram. I love seeing what you guys create with my recipes!

Ash xx

For more decorated cookie tutorials, check out these posts:

Snowflake Sugar Cookies

Speckled Egg Cookies

Print Recipe

4 from 4 votes

Black Cocoa Sugar Cookies

Black cocoa sugar cookies have an intense black color, delicious cocoa flavor, hold their shape when baking and are the perfect black canvas for Halloween cookies.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Chilling Time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 30 mins

Course: Dessert

Keyword: black cocoa, black cocoa sugar cookies, decorated cookies, Halloween cookies

Servings: -14 large cookies

Equipment

Ingredients

Black Cocoa Sugar Cookies

1 cup (230g) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 ½ cups (312g) all purpose flour
1/2 cup (50g) black cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

Royal Icing

4 cups (480g) confectioner's sugar, sifted
3 tablespoons meringue powder
4 tablespoons warm water
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 teaspoons light corn syrup

Instructions

Make the cookies:

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa and salt until combined. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugar until thoroughly combined.
Add the egg, followed by the vanilla extract beating until just combined.
Scrape down the bowl. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the flour/cocoa mixture and beat until just combined.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface sprinkled lightly with confectioner's sugar. Pat the dough into a disc shape.
Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Heat the oven to 350F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Place the chilled dough on a work surface that has been sprinkled with confectioner's sugar. Sprinkle the top of the dough and the rolling pin lightly with confectioner's sugar to prevent any sticking.
Roll out the dough to 1/8-3/8" thick, depending on your preference, rotating the dough as you roll to prevent the dough from sticking.
Cut out desired shapes and place the cookies 2" apart on the cookie sheets.
Place the cookie sheets into the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes to chill.
Bake the cookies for 17-20 minutes. Rotate the cookie sheets, halfway through baking. You're looking for the cookies to be soft when touched in the center, but fully cooked. Baking the cookies longer will result in a crispier cookie while baking them to just cooked will keep them soft.
Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheets for 10 minutes, before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Make the royal icing:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the confectioner's sugar and meringue powder.
Add the warm water, corn syrup and vanilla extract.
Beat on low until everything is blended. Turn the mixer to medium-high speed and mix until the icing forms stiff, glossy peaks, about 5-7 minutes.
Icing can be thinned with water depending on the desired consistency. Gel or powder food color can be used to color the icing. Keep the icing covered with a damp towel to keep from drying out. Decorate your cookies as you wish.

Notes

Black cocoa sugar cookie dough will keep in the refrigerator for up to three days. Dough can be frozen for up to a month.

Floral Piped Royal Icing Cake Tutorial

September 3, 2020 By Ashley 8 Comments

I’ll admit, piping techniques on cakes are not my strongest skill set. I can pipe all sorts of borders, sure, but any sort of piped design, lambeth techniques or flowers, count me out. I’m most definitely a work in progress with those techniques, but with this cake, I discovered a piping technique that I love. Not only is it easy, but it doesn’t have to be absolutely perfect. A little whimsy is preferred here. This easy floral piped royal icing cake is easier than you think and the options with this technique are endless.

Supplies

Fondant covered cakes (My cakes are 6×5, 8×5, 10×5 and 12×5)

Royal icing – stiff and piping consistencies, either white or light yellow

Edible gold dust

Clear high proof alcohol, or clear extract

Fine detail paint brush

#2 piping tips

Piping bags

Edible marker

Ascending bead mould

Variety of petal cutters – your preference (I used peony cutters)

Circle cutters (I used 1/2″ and 1″ cutters)

Plotting out the space for the piping and the beading designs

Before creating the flower design and piping, measure the out the space where the piping, and the bead design will go.

For the 6″, measure 3 1/2″ across the middle of the tier with a ruler, and used an edible black marker to make a small mark the middle, at 1 3/4″. Use the marker to then draw a little line at 0 and 3 1/2″. Now the top tier will be the guide on centering all of the other tiers. You can see an example of my lines in the upper right corner of the photo below.

For the 8″, place the ruler up to the center mark on the 6″, vertically, so that the ruler is straight up and down against the 8″ tier as well. Mark a small dot on the fondant to note the center of the 8″. Place the ruler horizontally onto the 8″ tier now, placing the ruler on the center dot at 2 1/4″. Place another small dot at 0 and 4 1/2″.

Repeat the same process for the 10″ tier, marking small spots with the marker at the center at 2 3/4, and on either side at 0 and 5 1/2.

Repeat the same process for the 12″ tier, marking small spots with the marker at the center of 3 1/4″, and on either side a 0 and 6 1/2″

The center mark keeps the design centered down each tier, and the marks to either side indicate the size space of the design, and also indicates where the bead design will go.

Impressing the cake with petal cutters

I decided to use (2) peony petal cutters to make the general floral pattern. I wanted to use the peony petals to match the large peony that I created for the floral topper arrangement. I also like the frilliness of the petals. You can use any cutters that you prefer. Note that the fondant on your cake to still be soft enough to be able to make an impression. In addition to using the peony cutters, I used (2) small circle cutters as well to indicate the flower centers.

Impress the flower centers first. Use a light hand, and only just make a faint outline. Place a full flower here and there if you wish, but make it look more organic by only impressing parts of flowers. Be sure to cover the center mark with the flowers, but do not impress beyond the two outer lines on the tier. Remember, this is where the beaded design will go.

Floral piped royal icing

Once you have made the faint petal impressions, prepare your piping bags for the floral piped royal icing technique. Make one icing bag with piping consistency royal icing, and another with stiff royal icing. Set the stiff bag aside, and fit the piping consistency bag with a #2 tip. Outline the flower petals with the piping royal icing. Add extra frills to the edges if you like, just remember it doesn’t have to be perfect. If you make a mistake, use a toothpick to scrape off the icing. Make some veining lines in the centers of each flower petal, coming from the center of the petal or from the outer edge. Be sure to not overlap the side lines. Stay within the designated area or you will be scraping off dry royal icing later.

After piping the flower petals, pipe the centers. Fit the stiff royal icing piping bag with a #2 piping tip. Pipe little dots in the centers. Go beyond the circle to create more imperfect circles. Overlap some of the dots to give the center a bit more of a pop and some depth. Let all the piping dry completely before painting.

How to make the beading effect

An ascending drop string of beads mould is needed to make the beading. You can find them at Michael’s Craft Store and Iron Orchid Designs (find a retailer near you, or a retailer online on their website – the Acanthus mould). I used the IOD mould for this cake. The string of beads on this mould are exactly 5″ so I used one full string on each tier, on either side of the piping, to create a straight line on both sides. Make (2) for each tier, and let dry for 10 minutes so they’re not too soft. Adhere the beads to the cake with water, in ascending order, with the largest bead at the bottom of the cake tier.

Design the rest of the beaded design on a silicone mat so that you have a guide, and can make them all identical. Since the moulds are going to be a bit different depending on what mould you have, it’s best to use the photos in this post as a guide to make them as similar as possible.

Painting the royal icing

Create a gold paint by adding alcohol to the gold dust until a thick paint forms. You don’t want this too thin, as it could drip and won’t have much coverage, but not too thick, that clumps of gold are left behind. You can also use Edible Arts gold paints as a substitute. Use a fine paintbrush to carefully paint the royal icing.

So, this is a do as I say, not do as I do sort of moment. I painted the gold BEFORE adding the beads. Oof. Spare yourself the mess of gold dust flake off, by painting the icing gold AFTER adding the beads.

Finishing touches

Leave the cake as it is, in its elegant simplicity, or with a sugar flower arrangement on top, as I did. To get remove any excess flour from the fondant or any random gold dust, lightly steam the cake with a steamer. You don’t want the fondant to appear wet or get warm, so just a little bit of steam will do the trick. The tutorial for my peony featured on this cake is listed below.

I hope you love this tutorial as much as I have loved creating it. Any questions, be sure to leave them below or DM me on Instagram. If you use any of these techniques in this floral piped royal icing cake, I’d LOVE to see your creations. Tag me on Instagram!

Ash xx

For more cake decorating tutorials, check out these posts:

Under the Sea Cake Tutorial

Vintage Gilded Buttercream Cake Tutorial

Woodland Tree Stump Cake Tutorial

Gum Paste Peony Tutorial

Tutorial: Speckled Egg Cookies

April 8, 2020 By Ashley Leave a Comment

Today, I’m sharing this tutorial for an easy and fast way to decorate some Easter themed cookies. These speckled egg cookies are great to decorate with the kiddos and make super cute Easter basket gifts. The sugar cookie recipe I use for my speckled egg cookies is my go-to recipe. They are easy to roll out and they hold their shape when baked. They’re easily adaptable – you can add in your favorite spices, extracts, herbs, and more. You can find the recipe for my sugar cookies on my Snowflake Sugar Cookie post.

I used an oval cookie cutter to cut out my cookies, and I tapered one end, by hand, to have a slightly pointed egg shape. You can also use a larger circle cutter and shape it to look like an egg. Alternatively, you can use a sharp knife and cut out an egg shape, with or without a template. I don’t buy a lot of cookie cutters since I don’t use them often so I tend to make do with what I have.

Once you cut out your cookies, they need to be chilled. Chilling is important with sugar cookies as it helps them retain their shape. Once the cookies have been chilled throughly, they are then baked and cooled completely. While the cookies are cooling, I make the royal icing. The recipe for my royal icing can also be found on my Snowflake Sugar Cookie post.

I made three different colors of royal icing to replicate the colors of Cadbury mini eggs – robin’s egg blue, dusty pink and golden yellow. To mix color into royal icing, be sure to add very little at a time using toothpicks. Royal icing takes on color really well and can get too saturated really fast. Keep in mind that it will also darken a shade or two after it is colored. These are the gel colors I used to color my royal icing:

Robin’s egg blue: royal blue and ivory

Golden yellow: gold, and lemon yellow

Dusty pink – electric pink, and ivory

Ivory helps to tone down the hues so that the colors aren’t overly bright. Ivory is super necessary to have on hand for coloring royal icing, glaze, fondant, gum paste, etc.

One of the main issues that I hear from readers regarding royal icing, is that they are unsure of what the consistency needs to be for outlining and flooding, and if it is necessary to have multiple consistencies. I’m a no-fuss, one piping bag per color sort of cookie decorator, so I use a medium consistency for both outlining and flooding. This royal icing consistency post by Sweetopia is super helpful when determining if your icing is ready, so be sure to check it out. Royal Icing post coming from me in the near-ish future.

I used a PME tip #4 to outline my royal icing. I flooded the cookie with an Ateco #12 tip. After flooding the cookie, lightly shake it to distribute the icing and create a smooth and even surface. Outline, flood and let the cookies dry completely on the surface.

For the brown splatter effect, I mixed cocoa powder with a little bit of alcohol until a liquid paste (or slurry) forms. You can also use extracts instead of alcohol. Aim to use an extract that will compliment the flavor of your cookies and/or icing. I also made a metallic gold splatter using edible gold luster dust.

Now, this is the messy part. If you have an airbrush box, do these next couple steps in the box. Otherwise, lay out some paper towels to catch the impending cocoa mess. Using a paintbrush that is designated for food only, or a small pastry brush, dip the brush into the liquid paste mixture and wipe off any dripping excess. Use your finger to flick the chocolate mixture from the brush onto the cookies. I do recommend that you practice on a paper towel first to get the hang of how much of the chocolate mix to add you your brush as well as a good distance to hold your brush from the cookies to achieve the overall technique. Variations splatter size looks best.

I repeated the same process with the gold, but I used much less of the splatter effect. I just wanted a little gold to pop on my cookies.

Let the cookies dry completely (preferably overnight) before storing or serving. Enjoy!

For another delicious Easter dessert, check out this recipe:

Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

Tutorial: Snowflake Sugar Cookies

December 2, 2019 By Ashley 2 Comments

Every holiday season when I was growing up, my mom and I would bake batches and batches of cookies the weeks leading up to Christmas. It was something I always looked forward to. I always hovered around to eat what was being baked, and also waited patiently to help cut out and decorate the sugar cookies. To this day, sugar cookies still always end up on our Christmas cookie platter as they are a family favorite.

While I’ve decorated loads of sugar cookies – a byproduct of owning a baking business, snowflake sugar cookies are some of my favorite to decorate. My snowflake sugar cookies will easily become your go-to cut out sugar cookie recipe. These cookies come together easily, roll out like a dream, and keep their shape when baked. Roll them out thinner for a crispier cookie, or roll them out thicker for more of a softer cookie.

The cookie dough has pretty typical ingredients found in a sugar cookie dough recipe, with butter, sugar, eggs, flour, salt and flavoring. I use vanilla bean paste with a hint of almond to flavor my cookies, but you can add zests, different extracts, herbs and spices to these cookies if you wish. These cookies are very versatile and adaptable to different flavor combinations.

One of the biggest issues that bakers tend to have with sugar cookies is spreading while baking. Some ways to prevent this is to just beat your butter and sugar together until combined. No need for “light and fluffy” for these cookies. Incorporating air during the beating process contributes to spread as it causes the cookies to puff up and deflate and spread while baking. Chilling the dough before baking is also an important step to help keep the cookies from spreading.

I should mention that I am not a pro cookie decorator. I generally do basic cookie decorating, but I do decorate cookies from time to time throughout the year, so I do have a few helpful tips and tricks that can help making cookie decorating a bit easier. I used royal icing to decorate my cookies but I use corn syrup in my recipe to help keep the icing from getting rock hard when dry, and it also helps the icing have a bit more elasticity when piping. The corn syrup also leaves the icing with a bit more shine. Royal icing with corn syrup does take just a little bit longer to dry at room temperature, but drying time can be sped up by drying the cookies in front of a fan.

If I’m planning for more of an intricate design for my cookies, I’ll trace the cookie cutter onto some sketch paper, then I’ll sketch out the design on the sketch paper to give me a better idea of what I’m trying to achieve, and to see if the design works and would translate well to the cookies. I got my snowflake cookie cutter from Target years ago, but any snowflake cookie cutter will work. Mine is about 4″, so it makes a cookie on the larger side.

Once I decided my design on paper, I used an edible ink marker and sketched out the basic design on my baked and cooled cookies. Use a lighter color, such as yellow or light brown and just do a light sketch so that the ink can’t be seen under the royal icing. I used two different icing consistencies – medium thick for outlining and a flooding consistency for filling in. I used three different icing tips – PME 1, 2, and 4. PME 2 for outlining, PME 1 for small details and PME 4 for “flooding,”or filling the cookies in with icing.

I topped my still wet cookies with a bit of sanding sugar to finish the design. Let the royal icing set completely before storing. Decorated sugar cookies will stay fresh for a week stored in an airtight container. I do not recommend freezing iced cookies. Condensation can ruin your royal icing, causing it to bleed colors and melt. You can freeze the cookies without icing. You can also refrigerate and freeze the royal icing, storing it in an airtight container.

These snowflake sugar cookies are the perfect cut out cookie for all your cookie decorating projects. They’re delicious, versatile and perfect for decorating for any holiday. Enjoy!

Check out these posts for more cookie recipes:

Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies

Brown Butter Maple Pecan Cookies

Print Recipe

No ratings yet

Snowflake Sugar Cookies

Buttery, tender sugar cookies that will easily become your go-to cut out sugar cookie recipe. These cookies come together easily, roll out like a dream, and keep their shape when baked.

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Chill1 hr

Total Time40 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: no spread sugar cookies, Snowflake Sugar Cookies, sugar cookies

Servings: -24 cookies

Equipment

Ingredients

Sugar Cookies:

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
3 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

Royal Icing:

4 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted
3 tablespoons meringue powder
4 tablespoons warm water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons light corn syrup

Instructions

Make the cookies:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugar until thoroughly combined.
Add the egg, beating until just combined.
Scrape down the bowl. Add the vanilla bean paste and the almond extract and beat to combine.
With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the flour and the salt and beat until just combined.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface sprinkled lightly with confectioner's sugar. Pat the dough into a disc shape.
Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Heat the oven to 350F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Place the dough on a work surface that has been sprinkled with confectioner's sugar. Sprinkle the top of the dough and the rolling pin lightly with confectioner's sugar to prevent from sticking.
Roll out the dough to 1/8-3/8" thick, depending on your preference, rotating the dough as you roll to prevent the dough from sticking.
Cut out desired shapes and place the cookies 2" apart on the cookie sheets.
Place the cookie sheets into the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to chill.
Bake the cookies for 17-20 minutes, until starting to turn a light golden brown on the edges. Rotate the cookie sheets, halfway through baking.
Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheets for 10 minutes, before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Make the royal icing:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the confectioner's sugar and meringue powder.
Add the warm water, corn syrup and vanilla extract.
Beat on low until everything is blended. Turn the mixer to medium-high speed and mix until the icing forms stiff, glossy peaks, about 5-7 minutes.
Icing can be thinned with water depending on the desired consistency. Gel or powder food color can be used to color the icing. Keep the icing covered with a damp towel to keep from drying out. Decorate your cookies as you wish.

Notes

Sugar cookie dough will keep in the refrigerator for up to three days. Dough can be frozen for up to a month.

This recipe makes 16-22 cookies depending on the size of the cutter used. I get 18 cookies with my 4" snowflake cookie cutter.