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This easy Gingerbread Icing recipe uses just 3 simple ingredients–egg whites, powdered sugar, and cream of tartar– to create the perfect royal icing ‘glue' for assembling and decorating gingerbread houses.
My Go-To Gingerbread Royal Icing
My Go-To Gingerbread Royal IcingIf you need icing that's going to glue together a gingerbread house fast, this is the recipe for you! We use it for our homemade gingerbread house and it's quick and easy to make, easy to pipe and decorate and strong enough to hold the pieces together if you want to use it for that instead of our sugar method.
Be sure to keep a damp cloth over the bowl while decorating to prevent it from drying out! Also don't use a plastic bowl to make royal icing! Use a glass or metal mixing bowl!
Check out all of my Christmas recipes, like Gingerbread Cookies, Chocolate Fudge, Chocolate Turtles, Rocky Road, or Gingerbread Cake!
How to make Gingerbread House Icing:
Whip Egg Whites: Pour egg whites into a metal bowl of a stand mixer (or use a hand mixer with a metal bowl). Whip for 2 minutes.
Finish Frosting: Add powdered sugar and cream of tartar and beat the frosting until smooth and has standing peaks (4-6 minutes). Use to decorate your gingerbread house or even to hold it together!
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Recipe
Royal Icing for Gingerbread House
Equipment
- Stand Mixer , or
Ingredients
- 4 large egg whites
- 4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
Instructions
- Whip Egg Whites: Place egg whites in a metal or glass mixing bowl and whip them for 1 minute.4 large egg whites
- Add Sugar: Add powdered sugar and cream of tartar and beat until smooth and standing peaks (about 4-6 minutes). Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth as you use the frosting (to prevent the frosting from drying out).4 ½ cups powdered sugar, 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
Notes
Nutrition
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Can I make this icing a day in advance or will it deflate because of the whipping of the egg whites or will it harden too much that we won’t be able to pipe it on?
Royal icing doesn’t store well made in advance. The egg whites will deflate and it will harden too much to pipe easily. It’s best to make it fresh when you need it since it only takes about 7 minutes. If you absolutely must make it ahead, you can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for a few hours and re-whip it briefly before using, but it won’t be as good as fresh. Keep a damp cloth over the bowl while working to prevent it from drying out.