I really feel I have mastered my fondant cookies so I would like to move on to the glaze type of frosting. When I look at the talent that is out there in this field, it is rather overwhelming and I think I will never get it!!!!!!
I have written down each persons recipe for royal icing and I am so confused. Could some of you talk about your recipes and why you like them over others????
I know that the leftover icing should be stored in the frig, but when you go to reuse it, should you beat it again?? Thanks so much for any help you can give me.

I use Antonia's recipe. It tastes good, you can add flavoring and it does not dry too hard (probably because of the butter in the cookie)
You should never keep royal in the fridge. Always at room temp which is why you use merriwhite instead of fresh egg white. HTH!

I use Antonia's also and like it. I store leftovers in airtight containers on my counter and always mix them up real well before using again since it separates after some time. I used to mix two different consistencies, one for outlining and once for flooding and then I read sweetopia's blog and she talked about her 10 second rule and that worked for me. A lot of people have different recipes and you can always try them and see which one works for you. When I get many recipes for the same thing I write them out next to each other and compare the ingredients and measurements and see if the recipes are really that different. HTH

Hey Karen,
Where ya been haven't seen ya on either site
I like Antonia 74's but also like a glaze icing as well!
I think you need to try a couple different recipes of each type and see what works for you.
Like everything else what works for one might be awful for another
Plus depending on the design might depend on what type you use for THAT cookie ...

what is the recipe

Here is Antonia 74's "How to "

http://cakecentral.com/articles/112/how-to-bake-decorate-cookies

I use powdered egg whites in my recipe. I originally liked it because I could get powdered egg whites cheaper than meringue powder. And now I keep using it because I know how it "feels." Plus....(and this is PURELY, PURELY speculative) I don't get a lot of color bleeding, and I think it might be because I use the powdered egg whites. (Again -- no proof, but I'm scared to change in case I'm right.)

Also, I definitely store my royal icing in the fridge. I just give it a stir and re-check the consistency before using it each time.

There are so many recipes and so many ways of doing things. I think you've just got to start somewhere. Pick a recipe with ingredients you can find and make it. If you like it...keep making it. Good luck!

I use glace to flood and royal to pipe. I like the consistency and taste of glace so i cover the cookie with that and then i use royal icing to pipe designs or borders cuz i can never get the glace thick enough to pipe without spreading.
I keep both icings in the fridge when not using.

luv2bake6,

That's exactly what I want to try on my first big project coming up this week: antonia74's Royal for my drop flowers & petals
with Toba Garrett's Glace glazed on the cookie.

Can you help me plan a little--how long will these babies need to dry before bagging up?

My thanks to you or anyone else who has advice on my plan!

Thanks for all the info everyone. I will try a few things this weekend and hope for the best