I made a Christmas tree cake the other day, and found out the icing will not stick to the cake, just fell right off.....What do I do to make it stick to the cake?????

Also on Royal icing, I either make it to runny or to thick, how do I make it just right??????

Betty

re: royal....start too thick and then add water A DROP or two AT A TIME until just right. sort of sneak up on the right consistency.

Hi Betty,

What type of icing did you make? was it regular powdered sugar buttercream, Italian Meringue or what? It sounds like it might have been too thin.

As for the royal icing, I think it is better to make it too thick and then little by little add water to get it just right.

HTH,
Berta

Edited cuz I wrote thin meaning thick

Maybe it was too thick?

Royal icing-stiff consistency
3 Tb meringue powder
4 cups powdered sugar
5 Tb water if you are using a KitchenAid or other heavy duty stand mixer.
Use 6 Tb water if you aren't using a stand mixer. Beat 7-10 minutes on low, keeping mixer & bowl covered with a damp cloth.

As Doug said, just add a little water at a time to this until you have the correct consistency you need.

Make sure you are using grease free bowls , decorating bags and utensils. I boil my tips in water and then soak a while in vinegar, to make sure they are grease free. You will not get stiff icing if the there is any trace of grease.

If your buttercream didn't stick to the cake, it is too thick. It used to happen all the time to me until I posted it here on CC and they told me!

Thin it out a bit for icing and leave it more stiff for decorating if you need it. I use it pretty soft for everything.

Lisa