Troubleshooting Royal Batch
Is Royal Batch not behaving like you'd hoped? Here's some common questions we get about working with Royal Batch and how you can troubleshoot an easy fix!
MY ICING HAS TOO MANY AIR BUBBLES
- When mixing your icing with Royal Batch Meringue Powder, whisk the meringue powder with water until foamy, usually 30-60 seconds is all it takes.
- If using a stand mixer, switch to a paddle attachment when adding the powdered sugar and mix on low until all the sugar is combined.
- When thinning your icing, add water in small amounts and be careful not to thin too much, thin icing tends to have more air bubbles.
- You can also cover your icing with plastic wrap and allow it to sit for 30 minutes or more. Use the back of a spoon to pop the air bubbles that come to the surface before using your icing.
HOW CAN I AVOID COLORBLEED?
Use the thickest icing possible for your design application. Thinner icing is more susceptible to colorbleed. Apply white/light colors first if you can, and allow icing to dry (enough that the surface is no longer sticky) before adding dark colored icing next to or on top of white/light icing. Be careful not to oversaturate your icing with too much food coloring. Using a fan or dehydrator to speed up the drying process can also help reduce the chance of colorbleed.
MY ICING IS CRUSTING/DRYING TOO QUICKLY
If you feel your icing is crusting/setting too quickly, reduce the amount of meringue powder you mix with water by 1 TBS.
MY ICING IS TAKING TOO LONG TO DRY/NOT DRYING COMPLETELY
Overmixed icing will take a long time to dry or may not dry at all. Oils in the icing can also cause problems in drying time so be careful when using extracts/flavorings that are oil-based. If you are using a plastic bowl for mixing your icing, it may retain oils from previous uses that can leak into your icing and affect your drying time.
HOW CAN I MAKE MY ICING STIFFER FOR PIPING FLORALS?
The provided recipe makes a royal icing that is good for outline consistency. If you want a thicker/stiffer icing, you can add quite a bit more powdered sugar until you get the consistency you’re looking for. You can also reduce the amount of water you add to the meringue powder – this will create a thicker icing that will dry more quickly as well.
