Sweetheart Valentine
 
 
Ingredients
  • 1 kg bag confectioner's (icing) sugar
  • 10 tbsp meringue powder
  • 3/4 cup water, or less as needed
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • pinch salt
Royal Icing
  • gel food coloring
  • disposable icing bags
  • #3 icing tips (I used 3 for 3 colors) and connectors
  • scribe tool (thin metal skewer - Wilton)
Instructions
  1. In a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, add the confectioner's sugar. Then with the mixer on low add almost all of the water, keeping some back in case it's not needed. Mix, adding the remaining water if needed until the icing is smooth and creamy. It should not stick to the paddle. If it does add water, one tablespoon at a time, blending after each addition until it is a nice frosting consistency.
  2. Blend in the vanilla and the pinch of salt.
Royal Icing
  1. Separate smaller portions of icing into individual bowls and add gel color to tint. Stir well with a small spoon, adding small amounts of water until the icing becomes more liquid. It should hold its shape for about 10-13 seconds when drizzled. *I made this icing a little more runnier than usual, to enable the colors to blend into each other more readily.
  2. Attach your connectors and then your icing tips to your bags. Then make sure to tuck the icing bag plastic into the top of the tip so the royal icing doesn't run out when being filled.
  3. Fill each bag with the mixed colors. If on your own, set each bag upright inside a large cup and then pour the icing in.
  4. Lay out your cookies on the counter and have a chair at counter height.
  5. Pull out the plastic from the top of the tip and gently squeeze the icing down into the tip.
  6. Outline each cookie, then go round and round until it is filled. Use the scribe tool to smooth and spread to fill gaps in the icing.
Polka Dots
  1. Immediately, using a second color, place small dots of royal icing down, staggering each row as you go. I did the center line, then on either side back and forth. This helps keep the lines the same distance apart.
  2. Gently tap the cookie if needed to blend the two colors together. Because this icing was made a little "runnier", they blended together almost immediately.
Heart Chain
  1. Flood the cookie. Then immediately, using a new color, make polka dots as above, going around the edge of the cookie. Or in rows as above.
  2. Using the metal scribe, gently drag through from the top of the first heart then go through each heart without lifting the skewer out, except if wiping excess icing from the scribe. As you drag through the dots, the heart shape will form into a chain.
Flourish
  1. Flood the cookie then immediately draw horizontal lines in a different color and tap to blend.
  2. Using a metal skewer, drag down through the center of the heart vertically. On either side of that line, drag the skewer up in the opposite direction. Repeat, going up and down vertically, until you reach the edge of the cookie.
Notes
These icing techniques were found at www.sweetambs.com where you can find helpful videos.
Recipe by Just a Smidgen at https://justasmidgen.com/2014/02/14/valentines-sugar-cookies-with-royal-icing/