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Toolbox Talk: Corn Syrup in Royal Icing

 

In this edition of Toolbox Talk, I'm zooming in on another ingredient that can mystify cookiers outside of the United States (US): corn syrup. It is sometimes listed in royal icing recipes, but it is not available all over the world. I am very grateful that Julia sent a bottle, so I could compare it with possible substitutes, namely glucose and glycerin.

 Corn Syrup and How It's Used
(Plus, Possible Substitutes)

Corn syrup is made from corn starch, and, in the case of the Karo light corn syrup that Julia gave me, it also contains salt and vanilla extract. Corn syrup is used in foods as a humectant (moistening agent) and to soften or smooth texture, prevent crystallization of sugar, and enhance flavor. It is a sweet, thick syrup and can be "light" (clear in color) or "dark" when molasses or refiners' syrup, a type of molasses, has been added. [Source: Karo website, Wikipedia.]

Corn syrup is sometimes added to royal icing for decorating cookies, but it is not added to the dough itself. I looked up several royal icing recipes online, and most of them (Sweet SugarbelleHaniela's, Wilton, Sweetopia, The Bearfoot Baker, Julia M Usher, LilaLoa, Biscuiteers, Flour Box Bakery, The Scran Line, and Martha Stewart) do not contain corn syrup. Only a few bakers (Bake at 350, Cookie CountessSugarDeaux, and SemiSweet Designs) seem to use it, and the Cookie Countess' recipe is actually adapted from SugarDeaux's formulation. All of these corn syrup-users mention the sheen or shine that the corn syrup gives to the icing. Mike from SemiSweet Designs goes further to say that it enhances the icing taste and provides some "elasticity" that minimizes breaking of lines mid-piping. I've also read that others use it to soften the "bite" of the icing once dry.

As our recent corn syrup survey indicated (see full summary below), glycerin (also known as glycerol or glycerine) and glucose, to a far lesser extent, are used in royal icing for many of the same reasons, but more often in countries where corn syrup is less available. I'll be talking about ingredient availability in the next section, but before I do, I just wanted to say a few words about how these two possible corn syrup substitutes compare. 

PRODUCTCOLLAGE1

Of the three ingredients, corn syrup is arguably the sweetest and most flavorful. It is also quite sticky, yet still pours and spreads quite easily, making it useful for adhering lightweight items to cookies too! Glucose, by contrast, is a lot thicker than corn syrup, and stickier too. It will not easily run off a spoon and is hard to paint or spread. It is also the heaviest of the three products, weighing 20 grams per tablespoon. In the US, glucose is sometimes referred to as "corn syrup", and "corn syrup" is typically listed as the sole ingredient in glucose, as you can see on the Wilton product packaging, above. This nomenclature is used because glucose is almost always derived from corn starch in the US. (In other parts of the world, glucose can be derived from rice, wheat, cassava, corn husks, or sago.) However, "corn syrup" is comprised of sugars other than glucose (namely maltose), so, strictly speaking, the two are not exactly the same. [Source: Wikipedia.] And because glucose is so thick, corn syrup and glucose can't be used interchangeably in all applications, at least not without adding water to glucose first.

As for glycerin, it is, chemically-speaking, a sugar alcohol made from plant sources (like soy beans or palm) or animal sources (namely tallow). It is slightly more runny than corn syrup and feels oily rather than sticky. It is mildly sweet but has a distinctively sharp, almost biting taste, which has led some decorators to caution against using too much of it in either royal icing or fondant (where it is often used to improve fondant's pliability).

 Corn Syrup Availability Around the World
(Substitute Availability, Too!)

First, one caveat regarding the following observations about availability: they are just that - observations gathered through a handful of interviews with Cookie Connection members. If you have additional information to share about availability in any of the areas listed below or others, please let me know in the comments section at the end of this post.

In South Africa and Belgium, my current and past places of residence: As mentioned earlier, Julia sent me a bottle of Karo light corn syrup, as I could not find it in South Africa. I checked online, in shops that cater to expats. I even sent a message to the US Embassy - and got an automated reply that I would not get a reply! I never came across corn syrup in Belgium, but then I only started baking when I was already living in South Africa. However, glucose and glycerin can be found in pharmacies in Belgium and in baking supply shops in South Africa. 

In the US: Corn syrup can be found in virtually every grocery store, and the dominant brand is Karo, though many private-label store brands also exist. By contrast, Julia has never found glucose or glycerin in a grocery store in the US. Both, however, are available online and in specialty cake supply stores, with Wilton being a primary brand of both. [Source: Julia M Usher.]

In New Zealand and Australia: While "corn syrup" is hard to find, glucose (derived from corn) is available under various brand names. It seems to be more available in Asian shops, as it is a common staple in many Asian kitchens. [Source: Kat Rutledge-ibicci.] [EDITOR'S NOTE: On my recent trip to Australia, my host could not find corn syrup, so we used glucose thinned with water for some of my painting and gluing applications.]

In Denmark: Corn syrup is not available, but glucose, derived from wheat starch, is stocked in every supermarket. [Source: Marie - LilleKageHus.]

In Germany: Corn syrup is only available at a premium price in special American food stores. [Source: Laegwen.]

[EDITOR'S NOTE: In the course of teaching classes in various parts of the world, I've also discovered that corn syrup is exceptionally hard to find almost everywhere outside of the US. I wonder if the fact that it's made with GMO-corn has caused other countries to shun it?]

 An Experiment (or Two!)

In this experiment, I wanted to test claims that corn syrup leads to a shinier icing and makes it less hard when dried. I also wanted to see if glucose and glycerin render similar results.

For the experiment, I followed the quantity of corn syrup in Cookie Countess' recipe: 1 tablespoon light corn syrup to 2 pounds (~907 grams) icing sugar. I also replaced the corn syrup one-for-one with glucose and glycerin, and, as a control, made some "plain" icing without any additive whatsoever. And then lastly, out of interest, I doubled and tripled the amounts of each additive to see what the results would be.  I let one series of cookies dry for four hours under a fan (not a dehydrator) and another series air-dry on the tabletop.

What I noticed first was that the air-dried cookies were still very wet after six hours. You can see the shine in the picture below. I let them dry for another few hours on the table in the sun, and, by the end of the afternoon, the icing had hardened a lot more. (Note: The dots on the cookies indicate how much additive was used, i.e., one dot = 1X or 1 tablespoon; 2 dots = 2X or 2 tablespoons; 3 dots = 3X or 3 tablespoons.)

Air dried after 6h - resized

There was a definite difference in level of shine between the two sets of cookies. The fan-dried ones were a lot shinier and less "grainy" than the air-dried ones. But more importantly, there was also a difference in shine within the sets. The fan-dried icing with corn syrup was the shiniest of them all, followed by the fan-dried icing with glucose and the plain icing. The icing with glycerin had no shine at all.

Glucose-Icing, Air-Dried vs. Fan-DriedGlycerin-Icing, Air-Dried vs. Fan-DriedCorn Syrup-Icing, Air-Dried vs. Fan-Dried

I also tested the icing for hardness. I did this test three ways: (1) by pressing my finger on the icing, (2) by pushing the tip of a knife into it, and (3) by scraping the tip of a knife over it. In the picture below, you will see that the glycerin-icing never really set. It remained soft (even sticky), and the cookies were hard to handle. There was almost no difference in hardness across the plain-, glucose-, and corn syrup-icing when the glucose and corn syrup were added in the quantity specified in Cookie Countess' recipe (i.e., 1 tablespoon or 1X). When more corn syrup or glucose was added (either twice as much, 2X, or three times as much, 3X), the icing became markedly softer. All icings set harder under a fan than when they were air-dried, though the glycerin-icing was still very soft in all cases (1X to 3X).

stress test - fan dried resized

Lastly, I did a taste-test with my family: they got to taste cookies with each of the three additives, both in 1X and 3X quantities, and plain cookies. The test was "blind", insofar as they could see the cookies, but did not know what, if anything, had been added to the icing in each case. The only icing they described as "hard" was the plain version; they described the others as "softer", though the corn syrup one had "a bit of a crunch". No one mentioned that the glycerin-icing was the softest, but I believe this was because its texture was immediately apparent, both visually and to the touch. Flavorwise, they could not discern much difference among the various icings. They described only a small uptick in sweetness as the additives were increased from 1X to 3X, and noted that the icing with triple the corn syrup had a hint of saltiness. Interestingly, they did not detect any sharpness in the glycerin-icing, even in the 3X batch. My guess is that the sugar overpowered it. 

Conclusions: This experiment generally confirms what has been written about adding corn syrup to royal icing: it gives a bit more sheen, especially when the icing is fan-dried, and makes the icing slightly softer, particularly if added in quantities greater than 1 tablespoon corn syrup to 2 pounds icing sugar. Glucose, introduced in the same quantity, produces similar, though less shiny results. Glycerin, in any quantity, makes the softest icing of all, but that icing is very difficult to handle and not at all shiny. So, if you can't find corn syrup and you want a shinier result, glucose is a reasonable substitute; also be sure to fan-dry it!

Your Use of Corn Syrup in Royal Icing
(aka Our Survey Results)

As noted earlier, Julia set up a survey to explore the cookie community's use of corn syrup (and glucose and glycerin) in royal icing, and here's what they said . . .

About 86% of respondents (n= 251) live in North America (US and Canada), which explains why 88% of all respondents state that corn syrup is "widely available" or "available" in most grocery stores. Only five people living outside of North America indicate similar availability.

About 62% of respondents report using corn syrup in their icing, with 39% using it "always", 15% using it "sometimes", and 8% using it only "rarely". Karo light corn syrup is the most popular brand/type by far, with 68% of respondents using it in their icing or baking. The most important reasons for using corn syrup in royal icing are to (1) cause the icing to set with a softer "bite" (47%), (2) to achieve a shinier result (38%), and (3) to enhance the icing texture or how it pipes (24%). Interestingly, one person uses it to delay the drying of icing, whereas four people use it to speed up drying! [EDITOR'S NOTE: Hmmm . . . sounds like relative drying time needs a more systematic test! Maybe in the next Toolbox Talk?! ] The main reasons that other cookiers give for not using corn syrup are (1) not knowing that it could be added to royal icing or (2) their recipes don't call for it. Other reasons are that it delays drying time or that it leaves the icing too soft for packaging the cookies without damaging them.

About 22% of respondents use glycerin in their icing either "always" or "sometimes" (citing the same reasons that others use corn syrup), in contrast to only 3% who use glucose "always" or "sometimes".

And that's a wrap on this Toolbox Talk! If you haven't yet answered our survey, please do so here, and please also share your experiences with corn syrup in the comments below. Thank you!

Liesbet Schietecatte, born in Belgium but permanently living in South Africa since 2005, accidentally found her way into cookie decorating in 2012. Grabbing moments in between her career as an archaeologist and being a mommy and a wife, Liesbet bakes Belgian biscuits like speculoos in the tradition of her grandmotherโ€™s family who were bakers for several generations, but she gets the most creative satisfaction from decorating with royal icing. She bakes and decorates for occasional orders and at times for a crafters' market, but mostly for the enjoyment and challenge of trying out new things. To honour her family's baking legacy, Liesbet uses the family name to give a home to her baking pictures on Facebook: Stockโ€™s โ€“ Belgian Artisan Bakes.  

Photo credit: Liesbet Schietecatte

NoteToolbox Talk is a bimonthly Cookie Connection blog feature written by Liesbet Schietecatte that explores similarities and differences in cookie tools and ingredients from all over the world. Its content expresses the views of the author and not necessarily those of this site, its owners, its administrators, or its employees. Catch up on all of Liesbet's past Cookie Connection posts here.

Attachments

Images (9)
  • Toolbox Talk Banner: Photo by Liesbet Schietecatte; Graphic Design by Julia M Usher
  • Comparison of Corn Syrup to Substitutes: Photos and Collage by Julia M Usher
  • Cookies, Air-Dried After 6 Hours: Photo by Liesbet Schietecatte
  • "Plain" Icing with No Additives, Air-Dried vs. Fan-Dried: Photo by Liesbet Schietecatte
  • Glucose-Icing, Air-Dried vs. Fan-Dried: Photo by Liesbet Schietecatte
  • Glycerin-Icing, Air-Dried vs. Fan-Dried: Photo by Liesbet Schietecatte
  • Corn Syrup-Icing, Air-Dried vs. Fan-Dried: Photo by Liesbet Schietecatte
  • Stress Test, Air-Dried Cookies: Photo by Liesbet Schietecatte
  • Stress Test, Fan-Dried Cookies: Photo by Liesbet Schietecatte

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Comments (32)

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Thanks, Liesbet! That was very, very interesting and as always I have learned a lot. I absolutely admire the work you put into your posts and the experiments you do to make the theory come alive

I have been doing a bit of research myself since I answered your question and have to give an update about my claim that you can get corn syrup in special American food stores - you can't anymore. I have been to 2 of them and they removed the product from their range. The reason is the GMO-corn. In the EU, you have to have a certificate that a product you import is free from that, and most manufacturers in the US cannot supply that (as both shop assistants explained). So they had to stop importing. What only puzzles me is that Karo still seems to be availble at Amazon Germany. But maybe Amazon is such a large buyer that they get a special batch from Karo without GMO-corn? I wasn't able to find out... but maybe I will send a message to Amazon and ask for explanations.

Another substitute for corn syrup, at least when it comes to pliability, is piping gel. Which is, as far as I understand, mainly glucose with some stabilizers added. It doesn't give any extra shine, as far as I have noticed, but makes things a bit easier when piping string work (the lines are more stable and tend to break less, both while piping and after they have dried).

Laegwen posted:

Thanks, Liesbet! That was very, very interesting and as always I have learned a lot. I absolutely admire the work you put into your posts and the experiments you do to make the theory come alive

I have been doing a bit of research myself since I answered your question and have to give an update about my claim that you can get corn syrup in special American food stores - you can't anymore. I have been to 2 of them and they removed the product from their range. The reason is the GMO-corn. In the EU, you have to have a certificate that a product you import is free from that, and most manufacturers in the US cannot supply that (as both shop assistants explained). So they had to stop importing. What only puzzles me is that Karo still seems to be availble at Amazon Germany. But maybe Amazon is such a large buyer that they get a special batch from Karo without GMO-corn? I wasn't able to find out... but maybe I will send a message to Amazon and ask for explanations.

Another substitute for corn syrup, at least when it comes to pliability, is piping gel. Which is, as far as I understand, mainly glucose with some stabilizers added. It doesn't give any extra shine, as far as I have noticed, but makes things a bit easier when piping string work (the lines are more stable and tend to break less, both while piping and after they have dried).

Thank you so much for taking it further @Laegwen!

Cookies4You posted:

I had heard that glycerine stabilizes royal icing color and reduces any inclination of dark icing to bleed into adjoining light colors.  It was interesting that no one mentioned anything about this.  I wondered if anyone else uses glycerine for this purpose or finds that it doesn't work.

haai @Cookies4You,  seeing that the icing stayed so soft and never really got hard I would expect colours to bleed more as there is a longer time to do so!

In the survey, there were only a handful of people who use glycerin, it doesn't seem to be very common at all. Maybe that will need to be a future experiment  

Liesbet posted:
Laegwen posted:

Thanks, Liesbet! That was very, very interesting and as always I have learned a lot. I absolutely admire the work you put into your posts and the experiments you do to make the theory come alive

I have been doing a bit of research myself since I answered your question and have to give an update about my claim that you can get corn syrup in special American food stores - you can't anymore. I have been to 2 of them and they removed the product from their range. The reason is the GMO-corn. In the EU, you have to have a certificate that a product you import is free from that, and most manufacturers in the US cannot supply that (as both shop assistants explained). So they had to stop importing. What only puzzles me is that Karo still seems to be availble at Amazon Germany. But maybe Amazon is such a large buyer that they get a special batch from Karo without GMO-corn? I wasn't able to find out... but maybe I will send a message to Amazon and ask for explanations.

Another substitute for corn syrup, at least when it comes to pliability, is piping gel. Which is, as far as I understand, mainly glucose with some stabilizers added. It doesn't give any extra shine, as far as I have noticed, but makes things a bit easier when piping string work (the lines are more stable and tend to break less, both while piping and after they have dried).

Thank you so much for taking it further @Laegwen!

OK, with the help of my good pal Google I was able to find out that GMO-products are not forbidden in the EU in general (and the regulations even vary from country to country!). Karo seems to be among those products that are allowed, even in Germany. But there is a lot of paper work do be done to import it, which probably doesn't make sense when you only buy a couple of bottles per year. Additionally the acceptance of GMO-foods is very low here (me included, I admit ), that's why most companies, especially small stores, just don't do them anymore.

But for anyone in Germany or the like who is interested in buying Karo corn syrup, you can get it on Amazon. For about โ‚ฌ 10 per bottle, plus freight. There is also a powdered bio version availble, but I have no idea if it might be used as a substitute for icing.

I haven't checked out Asian stores, but maybe I will when I find the time. But I have a strong feeling that even if you can get corn syrup there, it will also be made of GMO-corn...

@Liesbet

I just found your outstanding article on corn syrup, glycerine and glucose. Your study was quite thorough and informative. What a lot of work to make all of those icings with different ingredients and quanties, decorate cookies, then use different methods to dry them! Whew! Not to mention putting it all together, including all the stats! Bravo!! Personally, I have used both corn syrup and glycerine in my icing for years. I found my icing was still hard with just corn syrup and the glycerine made it softer. I canโ€™t eat iced cookies, (allergies) but my husband and family like them much better with the glycerine due to the softness of the icing. My cookies still dry, just not as hard, like in your picture, but they are shiny (I use a fan) and I do not have a problem with color bleed. You can see my cookies on Instagram at sweetsambolinaconfections. Thanks again for your great article! Judy Strome 

Last edited by Julia M. Usher
Cookies4You posted:

I had heard that glycerine stabilizes royal icing color and reduces any inclination of dark icing to bleed into adjoining light colors.  It was interesting that no one mentioned anything about this.  I wondered if anyone else uses glycerine for this purpose or finds that it doesn't work.

 

Cookies4You posted:

I had heard that glycerine stabilizes royal icing color and reduces any inclination of dark icing to bleed into adjoining light colors.  It was interesting that no one mentioned anything about this.  I wondered if anyone else uses glycerine for this purpose or finds that it doesn't work.

Hi,

i am the creator of  a line of meringue powder and have done a lot of research on effects of the items in the study.  

Glycerin, in my testing and studies, retains moisture (since it is a natural humectant as was mentioned above). Since that delays drying time it actually seems to do the exact opposite of what you are asking.  

When someone mentions bleeding my first suggestions are to use corn syrup in place of glycerin and increase the amount of meringue powder just a tad. 

Thank you Liesbet for taking time to do this research and Cookies 4 You for such a great comment!  We all learn so much from these!

 

 

Hi Liesbet

Thank you so much for this post.  I am also from South Africa (Bloemfontein Free State) and was also looking for corn syrup in all retail stores and could'nt find any. 

I am baking for retail shops but want to start with sugar cookies as well. my plan is to market them to private clients who order themed cakes for their kids birthdays.

Again, thanks a lot. This post was really interesting. Have a great day.

Sanet

Sanet posted:

Hi Liesbet

Thank you so much for this post.  I am also from South Africa (Bloemfontein Free State) and was also looking for corn syrup in all retail stores and could'nt find any. 

I am baking for retail shops but want to start with sugar cookies as well. my plan is to market them to private clients who order themed cakes for their kids birthdays.

Again, thanks a lot. This post was really interesting. Have a great day.

Sanet

mรดre Sanet,

cookies are so much fun. It will take some practice to get them the way you want, but keep trying. Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions.

groete,

Liesbet

(and I am in CT; and we are getting Marta Torres out for 22 classes in May next year!)

 

Tami B posted:

I am an art teacher who loves decorating cookies and I am new to royal icing. It is as if you knew what all my questions were. Thank you very much for sharing your hard work and information. Wondering if you have a thought or scientific results of baking soda and cream of tartar versus baking powder?

Haai Tami, thank you very much for your comment. I am hoping any of the other members will answer your question, I have no baking science knowledge whatsoever! I usually go for the empirical approach ๐Ÿ˜‰

Tami B posted:

I am an art teacher who loves decorating cookies and I am new to royal icing. It is as if you knew what all my questions were. Thank you very much for sharing your hard work and information. Wondering if you have a thought or scientific results of baking soda and cream of tartar versus baking powder?

Tami, it's pretty well documented in baking literature that baking soda (which needs to be activated with an acid like cream of tartar) has about four times the leavening power of baking powder. So if a recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of baking powder, you'd use 1/4 teaspoon baking soda (plus an activating agent) for equivalent leavening.