My granddaughter's teacher asked me to make RI to use making gingerbread houses. Even though I thought I cleaned my bowl and beater well, my RI failed the last time I made it. How can I be sure there is no grease on my bowl and beater? Thanks in advance.

Rinse everything that will come in contact with the RI in hot water with a good dose of white vinegar in it. Everything will come out squeaky clean and grease-free.

HTH
Rae

How did it fail??

In culinary school we were taught to wash bowls and beaters with vinegar and salt, and then rinse really well afterwards... It works like a charm!

I only ever wash my bowl with soap and water (don't even run it through the dishwasher) and have never had a problem.

Are you sure it was grease and not something else? Can you describe the way the icing was?

Are you sure you're not overdosing the water?

1 pound powdered sugar, 3 Tbsp meringue powder, 5 Tbsp plus 1 teaspoon water....mix on medium speed for 7 minutes.

Well, I don't actually know. I usually follow recipe well, but it was a long time ago. Last time it looked more like really crusted buttercream, maybe a little harder but not RI hard. I assumed it was grease based on what I read here. That seemed to be the most common answer. So, you think maybe I mis-measured?

Who on earth knows?

All you can do is try again.

My chef instructor from culinary school would faint dead in the floor if he heard of anyone putting water in RI. Powdered sugar, egg white and an acid, usually lemon juice. I suppose you must use a bit of water if you're using the meringue powder, though.

Sorry, I was having a flashback.

But really, RI needs the touch of acid to really tighten up.

I doubt it was grease from the way you explained it. Grease keeps the egg whites (the MP in this case) from whipping up and will leave you with a soupy mess. If it did get thick, like you are describing, then it sounds it mixed up fine and almost like you may have needed a little more water to thin it down.

The weather can play a factor when making royal icing. If it is dry outside, then you often need to add a little more water, if it is humid, then you may need less water. Always start with the lesser amount and add very little at a time, if it is too thick.

Royal icing should never be so thick that it hurts your hands to pipe with, but for most things you do need it to hold its shape so you can't get it too thin.

And don't forget to mix it atleast 7 mins with a stand mixer or 10 with a hand. If you don't mix it long enough it feels very thick, but won't hold it's shape for nothing.