If you browse through a random handful of baking-related cookbooks and websites, you'll find any number of recipes for glazes, icings and frostings. Some of them are insanely elaborate and require a high level of skill and experience to execute confidently. A simple icing sugar and water glaze, sometimes called "flat icing" or "glace icing," falls at the opposite end of the scale. It couldn't be easier to make, and it's versatile enough to use on a wide variety of cookies, pastries and cakes.
Total Time: 5 minutes | Prep Time: 5 minutes | Serves: Makes enough for 1 dozen small cookies or cupcakes
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup powdered confectioners' sugar
- 1 to 2 tablespoons water or other liquid
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
Directions:
- With a pastry sifter or wire mesh strainer, sift the confectioners' sugar into a mixing bowl. Press it through the mesh carefully to remove any lumps.
- Stir in the water or other liquid and the vanilla, if you're using it, to make a thin and pourable glaze. It should be smooth in texture, thinner than pancake batter, but thicker than heavy cream.
- If the mixture is too dry, add a few drops of water at a time until if flows freely. If the mixture is too wet, sift in a bit more confectioners' sugar.
- Use the icing immediately or store it in the mixing bowl with a sheet of plastic wrap pressed directly to the surface of the icing to keep it from drying out.
Variations:
- Replace the water with milk or light cream for a richer version of the same icing.
- Swap out the vanilla for almond extract, rum extract, mint extract or any similar flavoring, choosing one that's compatible with your main recipe. Alternatively, dissolve a small quantity of instant coffee or espresso powder in your liquid to make a coffee-flavored glaze.
- Replace the water with lemon juice or other fruit juices to make a tangy glaze for pastries, donuts or coffee cakes.
- Add cinnamon or other warm spices to the glaze if it's going to be used on a cake with compatible flavors.
- Substitute cocoa powder for part of the confectioners' sugar to make a chocolate version of the glaze.