This quick and easy vegan royal icing recipe is made with a few simple ingredients and makes beautifully decorated cookies! Traditional royal icing recipes use egg whites as the base ingredient for the icing, but this recipe simply uses water to achieve a similar effect.
Decorate the most colorful holiday cookies and cakes or make beautiful gingerbread houses with this simple and easy recipe!
This eggless royal icing recipe will make the most beautiful dairy-free and gluten-free desserts.
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I've tried many different methods for royal icing over the years, like using aquafaba (the liquid from a can of chickpeas), vegan meringue powder, or Ener-G egg replacer instead of egg whites.
After experimenting with many different methods, I've found that water has a similar effect and it actually gives the best results by making smoother eggless royal icing without air bubbles.
I also like to keep my Christmas cookies at room temperature for a few days without worrying about anything in the icing needing refrigeration. This simple vegan royal icing is simply the best recipe for cookie decorating.
You can use this royal icing on my easy vegan sugar cookies, vegan shortbread cookies, or vegan gingerbread cookies.
🧾 Ingredients and substitutions
- Powdered Sugar - (aka icing sugar or confectioner's sugar) to make it sweet. You must use powdered sugar for this no other sweetener will work. (Most organic brands of powdered sugar are not filtered using bone char and are therefore vegan, but they also tend to be lumpy. You will want to sift the sugar to get the clumps out before you make the icing).
- Water - to make the sugar wet and turn it into a paste. (You can also use any plant-based milk or lemon juice if you would like for a little more flavor).
- Light Corn Syrup or Agave Nectar - to make it sticky and shiny. (optional)
- Extract - for flavor. Add vanilla extract, almond extract, peppermint extract, or orange extract for a hint of flavor to your icing. (optional)
- Food Coloring - to make your icing different colors. Be sure to look for vegan food coloring. Gel colors work great for deep colors.
🔪 Helpful tools
- Flour Sifter or Wire Mesh Strainer - to sift the clumps out of the powdered sugar.
- Pipping Bags or Ziploc Bags - to pipe the icing onto your cookies. (aka pastry bag)
- Small Bowls - to mix separate colors.
- Scribe Needle - for getting air bubbles out of the icing and decorating with precision and intricate details.
Since this recipe doesn't use aquafaba there is no need for a stand mixer or high-speed hand mixer, you simply need a bowl and a fork or whisk.
🥄 How to make vegan royal icing
Step 1 - Sift the powdered sugar into a medium-sized mixing bowl. (This will make the consistency of the icing smoother.)
Step 2 - Add the water, and corn syrup, extract and stir with a fork until it forms a smooth paste.
Step 3 - Add a few extra drops of water until you get the right consistency. It should be a glue-like consistency for piping. (For thinner icing add just a drop or two of extra water.)
Step 4 - Divide the white icing into small separate bowls and add 2-3 drops of vegan food coloring or gel food colors to each one and stir well to get different colors.
Step 5 - Spoon the icing into a piping bag (or Ziploc bag with a tiny hole cut in the corner) and pipe it onto your favorite cut-out cookies.
👩🏻🍳 Pro Tips
- Make the icing thick to start and use the thicker icing to pipe the outer edges of the cookies. Then add another drop or two of water to make the icing slightly thinner to use to flood the inside of the cookie with icing.
- If your royal icing has a thick consistency, add a little water - just a drop or two to thin out the icing.
- If the icing is too thin add a teaspoon or two of sifted powdered sugar to thicken it if you get it too thin.
- Add vegan sprinkles to the cookies immediately after piping on the royal icing so that they stick better.
- When decorating cookies with kids - I like to make up a double batch of royal icing and fill up little snack-sized ziplock bags with the icing. I make a least 2 bags of each color so they aren't fighting over the same color. Also, be sure to cut a very small hole in the bag so they don't squeeze too much out at once.
🥡 Storing decorated cookies
After you decorate your cookies, leave them out uncovered for a few hours until they dry out a little. Once the top layer is dry, they will no longer be sticky and you can carefully stack them in an airtight container with a piece of parchment paper between them.
The royal icing will keep well at room temperature for about 3 days, in the fridge for about 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Storage Tip - Place a piece of parchment paper between the layers of cookies to make sure they don't stick together if you are stacking them.
❓ What is the best-tasting icing?
I must be honest about royal icing... it's beautiful and it makes the prettiest cookies, but it just doesn't taste as good as frosting. If you want a beautifully decorated cut-out cookie that looks like it came from a bakery, then use this vegan royal icing recipe for sure.
However, if you want an amazing-tasting frosting for your cookies, I highly recommend my vegan buttercream frosting. We usually do one batch with royal icing for the fun of decorating and then do another batch with buttercream, because it simply tastes better.
You can also use my vegan icing recipe or my vegan whipped cream frosting recipe to decorate your cookies.
🌟 More vegan cookies
- Vegan Snickerdoodles
- Vegan Oatmeal Cookies
- Vegan Chocolate Cookies
- Vegan Thumbprint Cookies
- Coconut Macaroons
- Vegan Butter Cookies
📌 Be sure to follow me on Pinterest for new vegan recipes!
📋 Vegan royal icing recipe
Vegan Royal Icing
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups powdered sugar sifted
- 2 tablespoons corn syrup or agave nectar
- 2 tablespoons water or plant-based milk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract or any other flavor of choice
- 1-3 drops vegan food coloring
Instructions
- Sift the powdered sugar into a medium-sized mixing bowl. (This will make the consistency of the icing smoother.)
- Add the water, and corn syrup, extract and stir with a fork until it forms a smooth paste.
- Add a few extra drops of water until you get the right consistency. It should be a glue-like consistency for piping.
- Divide the white icing into small separate bowls and add 2-3 drops of food coloring to each one and stir well to get different colors.
- Put the icing into a piping bag (or Ziploc bag with a tiny hole cut in the corner) and pipe it onto your favorite cut-out cookies.
Video
Notes
- Make the icing thick to start and use the thicker icing to pipe the outer edges of the cookies. Then add another drop or two of water to make the icing slightly thinner to use to flood the inside of the cookie with icing.
- Add a drop or two of water to thin out the icing or a few more tbsp of powdered sugar to thicken it if you get it too thin.
- Add sprinkles to the cookies immediately after piping on the royal icing so that they stick better.
- When decorating cookies with kids - I like to make up a double batch of royal icing and fill up little snack-sized ziplock bags with the icing. I make a least 2 bags of each color so they aren't fighting over the same color. Also, be sure to cut a very small hole in the bag so they don't squeeze too much out at once.
Nutrition
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Click the stars above or leave a comment! I'd love to hear from you!
I’m wanting to use this for a homemade gingerbread house. Will I be able to store the assembled gingerbread house out of the fridge for about 1-2 weeks? I’m assuming it’ll be fine as there’s no dairy in it but just wanted to double check. Thanks
Yes, it will be fine to store it out of the fridge for a few weeks. Just use the water method to be sure that it keeps the longest. Enjoy! 🙂
this recipe not only sounds delicious but easy.Can I use it to make flowers
Do you mean for piping flowers? It will no hold its shape, it settles and gets flat and shiny.
I have to bake and decorate 2 doz cookies for a customer who has food sensitivity. If I use your vegan royal icing recipe to decorate the cookies how long should I wait before individually bagging each cookie?
I think that it would be safest to let them dry overnight or at least 6-9 hours before bagging. It really depends on humidity though.
Hi - can I use brown rice syrup or honey for non vegans?
Yes, any liquid sweetener will work. I don't think that brown rice syrup will be as shiny though. Enjoy!
Hi! Have you tried using your recipe here to make homemade gingerbread houses? How well do you think this would hold the pieces of the house together?
Thanks!
I have used it and it works pretty well, just be sure to keep the royal icing fairly thick. Enjoy! 🙂
I use this recipe every year for our gingerbread house. Yes just keep it thick for assembling the pieces especially.
Can I put them in the fridge to harden quicker?
The fridge won't help that much. You could put a small fan on them. They need to dry out to harden. Enjoy!
My icing never set. It is tacky to the touch. I allowed it to set for 24 hours and it is still tacky. It is not humid or hot in my location and I kept them in a cool room while making and setting. Please help!
It sounds like you used a tiny bit too much liquid. (Small changes make a big difference in the consistency.)You could try putting a fan near them to help dry them out a little more. I hope that helps.
Hi When you say powdered sugar do I buy Pure icing sugar without corn flour or any caking agent in it ? Or is it something else ?
I have tested it with both types and they both work fine.
Hi there! I want to make gingerbread men and pipe an icing pattern on, before freezing them. Will they soften when defrosted?
Let the cookies and the icing dry well before you freeze them and thaw them uncovered and you should be fine. Enjoy! 🙂
Hi
After decorating the cookies and keeping them at room temperature for 12 hours do I just stack the decorated cookies and store them in a airtight container and freeze them for 2 months? How do you thaw them ?
Yes, you will just want to let them dry and stack them in a container. You may want to place a piece of parchment paper between each layer for added protection. You can just thaw them on the countertop with the lid off to allow any humidity to evaporate. Enjoy!
I want to use your icing recipe for my husbands birthday fruit cake. I have made some marzipan for it. My question is: will the icing keep at room temperature for 2 weeks? If not can you recommend an icing recipe (without eggs) that would?
Hi Mandy, If you need it to keep for that long, I would use water instead of plant-based milk.
Are you able to use maple syrup as substitute for agave nectar?
I think that it will work, but it may make it a little bit brownish.
Does it seperate like reg royal icing does if you leave it in the bag for a few hrs?
No, I've never had a problem with it separating after it sets for a while.
thanks for the gave nectar addition to this recipe.
how long does it take for these iced cookies to dry so they’re stackable?
I would let them dry for about 12 hours before stacking them just to make sure. Enjoy 🙂
Do I need to refrigerate the cookies after icing them? How long can I store this icing in refrigerator?
No need to refrigerate the cookies as long as you will eat them in 2-3 days. You can keep the icing in the fridge for about 1 week. Enjoy! 🙂
Thanks for the recipe! I’ve seen glycerin used in royal icing recipes - would that have the same affect as corn syrup/agave? Is glycerin even vegan?? (I’m not vegan so I may just be ignorant.)
Interesting, I've never used glycerin in royal icing before, but I bet it gives it a nice shine. Some types are vegan and some are not, so be sure to read the label if you want a vegan version. 🙂
I've tried to make vegan royal icing before and it was such a process. I love that this was simple and easy for the same result. I used your little baggy method and let my 3 kids and their friends decorate. It worked perfectly for a "decorating party." Thank you so much!
I'm so happy that you liked it, Sarah! Your decorating party sounds like fun! 🙂