Estimations for how long you need to let royal icing dry vary, but you should typically let it sit for at least this long.

Trim You can accent royal icing with sanding sugar or colored sprinkles before the icing hardens. Allow the cookies to dry several hours before storing them between sheets of waxed paper.

Whether you're into frosting, icing, or sprinkles, these fool-proof decorating methods are ideal for budding cookie ...

The key to making these edible works of art is royal icing, the glossy mix of meringue powder, powdered sugar, and water, that stays just liquid enough to paint, marble, and pipe, and then dries hard.

Decorate with royal icing for the best results "Royal icing contains egg white, so it's stretchier and just easier to pipe — plus it will dry completely hard over night. Water icing won't." ...

This frosting dries perfectly with a nice shine. This buttercream has a bit of corn syrup to make the prettiest creamiest icing for any cookies you bake that need a bit of frosting. Perfect for ...

Place all icing ingredients in mixing bowl and mix with electric beater for about 10 minutes. After mixing, be sure to keep bowl covered with a damp cloth at all times; icing dries quickly and hard.

Judy Buchenot / Beacon-News Susanna Brandon first outlines the cookie shape with a stiff frosting. After it dries, she floods the space with a thinner frosting. Judy Buchenot / Beacon-News Here ...