How To Make Iced Biscuits

How to make iced biscuits: A Step-by-Step Guide

We bake many personalised royal iced biscuits at The Biskery and we would love to let you in on all the techniques we use in our kitchen. Many of these we have discovered by trial and error. We hope the below guide will take away the hard work of so that you can start using this skill in your home kitchen today.

So let's dive in!

Step 1: Preparation

Make your royal icing: we dedicated a blogpost to this specifically which you can read here.
Bake or Buy Biscuits: Before embarking on your decorative journey, it's essential to have the perfect base to showcase your artistry. If you're a baking enthusiast, you'll want to bake your own biscuits. For those who prefer a quicker approach, store-bought biscuits with a smooth flat surface provide an excellent starting point.
Plan Your Design: Decide on the overall design you want to create. Consider the occasion or theme, and choose colours accordingly.
Prepare Icing: Before diving into the intricate details, prepare your icing station. Start by setting aside a portion of the stiffer icing, which resembles toothpaste in consistency. This will be used for outlining your designs. Divide the remaining icing into smaller containers and add the desired food colouring to each.
Fill Piping Bags: The piping bag is your trusty companion in this creative adventure. To fill the piping bag, insert the nozzle with the pointed end protruding from the hole. Gently fill the bag with icing, ensuring it's no more than half full to avoid overflow when applying pressure. Use a number 2 nozzle for the outline, a number 3 nozzle for flooding, and a number 1 nozzle for detailed work.

Step 2: Outlining the Base

Practice Icing Flow: Squeeze a bit of icing onto a piece of paper towel to get a feel for the flow before starting on the biscuits.
Pipe the Outline: With a deep breath and a steady hand, begin piping the outline of your design onto the biscuit. Use a number 2 nozzle for a straight line effect. If you make a mistake, fear not! Simply wipe away the errant line with a paper towel and start afresh. Remember, practice makes perfect.
Let it Dry: Allow the icing outline to dry for 5-10 minutes.

Step 3: Flooding the Base

Flood with Runnier Icing: Once the outline is set, it's time to flood the base with color. Switch to a piping bag fitted with a number 3 nozzle and fill it with runnier icing. Starting from the outside edge, gently pipe the icing towards the center, leaving a slight gap between lines.
Level the Icing: Use a toothpick to gently drag through the wet icing, smoothing out any irregularities and creating a level surface.
Remove Air Bubbles: If any tiny air bubbles appear, pop them with a toothpick.
Let it Dry: Allow the flooded base to dry completely, which may take an hour or longer depending on the biscuit size and icing amount. Alternatively, bake the biscuits at 50°C for 30 minutes to expedite the drying.

Step 4: Decorating the Base

Hand-Decorating: Using the piping bags with different icing colors, hand-decorate the biscuit according to your design. You can trace the edible ink outlines or create your own designs.
Let it Dry: Allow the decorated biscuits to dry completely for about an hour before handling, packaging, or consuming.

Tips & Tricks for making iced biscuits

Fondant Shortcut: If you prefer a simpler approach, consider using fondant instead of icing for the base. Cut out fondant shapes using a biscuit cutter or a sharp knife. Draw the desired design on thick paper, place it over the fondant, and cut around it with a sharp knife. Let the fondant dry for at least an hour at room temperature.
Edible Ink Pen: For precise designs or logos, use an edible ink pen to trace the outlines onto the dry icing base. There are many apps and gadgets that you can use for this we sometimes use Fino. And then you can trace over the design with royal icing.

If you are looking for professional hand-iced biscuits, then let us know at enquiries@thebiskery.com we are happy to help.

Written by Saskia Roskam