When I add gel or soft paste food coloring to my royal icing, it won’t fully mix. There’s white streaks throughout the icing no matter how much I stir. I’ve mixed hundreds of batches of royal icing with the same recipe and brands of ingredients and never had this issue! I’ve tried making new batches of icing using a new batch of meringue powder, cleaned everything with vinegar, used thicker consistencies, added more meringue powder . . . nothing has solved this issue, HELP!
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Hi, WillaRose, Congrats on making your first post. I look forward to many more to come!
Hi, Willa. You said: "I’ve mixed hundreds of batches of royal icing with the same recipe and brands of ingredients and never had this issue!" So I am curious what you changed this time. There must have been something?? Can you think back to what you did differently this time - as that is likely the culprit. It sounds like you tried changing everything but the brand/type of food coloring. So maybe try a new brand? Or, as Econlady said, maybe you just need to try a fresh bottle of it.
I sometimes see streaks in highly saturated colors that reappear as the icing sits, but if I stir it well and then flood, the streaks generally work themselves out (I assume as they get pushed through my piping cone) and aren't a problem on the cookie.
Thanks but no, I haven’t changed a thing. The food coloring was all purchased in the past 6-8 months. I’ve tried using Americolor soft paste and Chefmaster liquigel and both result in the same issue. And I can’t work the streaks out no matter how much I stir, my cookies look terrible with streaks and blotches of white all throughout.
Two questions. What meringue powder do you use? Second, you say the problem is the bowl and get worse with drying? The picture makes it hard to see streaks because or reflections.
@WillaRose posted:Thanks but no, I haven’t changed a thing. The food coloring was all purchased in the past 6-8 months. I’ve tried using Americolor soft paste and Chefmaster liquigel and both result in the same issue. And I can’t work the streaks out no matter how much I stir, my cookies look terrible with streaks and blotches of white all throughout.
If you've changed nothing and it all worked well before, it's tough to know how to guide you. The likely culprit would be something you changed, but . . . I know that, for the most stable results with coloring, I always mix the coloring into thick icing and then gradually thin it to the consistency I need. I find I get more spotting and such if I start with a loose icing and then color it. Not sure why that would be, but it seems to be the case for me. Other than that, all I can suggest is trying newer coloring (check the expiration date on those bottles). But, honestly, the color doesn't look too bad from the photos.
The reason I ask about meringue powder my icing was fine and suddenly started acting up. I changed my meringue powder to genies and all the problems disappeared. I was using CK and it turned out that CK had changed manufacturers.
@WillaRose posted:
Using CK, I just ordered Genie but it won’t be here before these batches are due. It won’t mix well in the bowl, separates even more in the bag and dries the same. This pic is after I mixed, thinned, and flooded within a 5 minute time span.
If lived you were close to me I’d give you some meringue powder or icing from my freezer. It looks like it’s not completely mixed. The reality whoever gets the cookie won’t care. Just tell them it’s on purpose to give it more depth or interest.
Aww you’re sweet! I’m doing a lot of airbrush patterns over the solid floods so it should hide them pretty well.
