Sugar Cookie Icing (Easy Sugar Cookie Frosting)
Posted Oct 03, 2026
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This sugar cookie icing recipe is easy to make with 4 ingredients in 5 minutes! It’s smooth and glossy, tastes delicious and hardens with a beautiful shine so decorated cookies can be stacked and transported. This easy sugar cookie frosting is perfect for decorating cut out sugar cookies for Christmas, birthdays and holidays!
I’ve been making and decorating sugar cookies since I was a kid, and now it’s one of my favorite traditions to do with my own kids every Christmas. They absolutely love being creative and decorating cookies with this sugar cookie icing recipe – and tons of sprinkles of course!
Over the years, I’ve perfected this sugar cookie frosting so it’s easy to work with (especially for kids), stays wet long enough to decorate with sprinkles, and hardens well with a beautiful shiny finish.
Plus, it’s so easy to make! There are no egg whites or meringue powder required. Just whisk together four simple ingredients and you’re ready to decorate!
Why You’ll Love This Sugar Cookie Icing Recipe
- So fast and easy! It’s made with 4 ingredients in 5 minutes (or less).
- Hardens really well The icing sets so you can stack the decorated sugar cookies without making a mess.
- Gorgeous shine. Light corn syrup gives this sugar cookie frosting a beautiful glossy finish.
- No meringue powder. You don’t need egg whites or meringue powder to make this easy sugar cookie icing.
- Perfect for decorating. It can easily be colored and piped onto sugar cookies, then decorated with your favorite sprinkles.
- Kid-friendly. I specifically created this recipe for my kids!
Sugar Cookie Frosting: Ingredients & Substitutions
Let’s discuss the ingredients in this recipe, as well as possible substitutions.
- Powdered sugar. This is the main ingredient of the icing, I don’t recommend substitutions.
- Whole milk. Heavy cream or half and half are good substitutes. Make sure it’s room temperature – cold milk will be harder to mix into the powdered sugar, so you’ll be tempted to add more to get it to a smooth consistency. But if you do this, the frosting will be too thin and runny as the milk comes to room temperature. For the perfect sugar cookie icing consistency, start with room-temperature milk and add more only if necessary.
- Light corn syrup. This is the secret to sugar cookie icing that hardens with a beautiful shine. I don’t recommend leaving it out of this recipe. If you’re looking for an icing without corn syrup, try my vanilla icing instead.
- Vanilla extract. Pure vanilla – no imitation – always.
How to Make Sugar Cookie Icing Recipe
Let’s walk through this recipe step-by-step, and as always you can watch the video for further guidance!
Begin by adding the powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons milk, light corn syrup and vanilla extract to a medium bowl and whisking until the icing is smooth and shiny.
If necessary, add more milk 1 teaspoon at a time until the sugar cookie icing reaches your desired consistency.
The icing should be thick enough to hold its shape when piped around the edge of a cookie, but thin enough that it can easily be spread to fill in the center.
Color the Sugar Cookie Icing
Once the frosting reaches your desired consistency, divide it evenly between bowls, one bowl for each color of frosting you want to make.
Then, add gel food coloring one drop at a time, until you make the color you want. Be very careful because gel food coloring is very pigmented and a little goes a long way.
Sugar Cookie Icing Troubleshooting Tips
Here are some common issues people run into when making this frosting, and how to fix them.
How to Thicken Sugar Cookie Icing
Add powdered sugar 1 tablespoon at a time until it reaches the desired consistency. You may even need to do this after adding the food coloring if you notice it thinned out the frosting too much.
How to Thin Sugar Cookie Frosting
Add milk ½ teaspoon at a time. Make sure you use tiny amounts of milk because it’s super easy to go from too thick to way too thin really quickly.
My Icing Isn’t Hardening
It’s possible your kitchen is too warm and it’s preventing the frosting from hardening. Put the decorated cookies in the refrigerator for 2 hours or freezer for 1 hour to speed up the process.
Next, it’s time to transfer the colors to piping bags. Make sure your tip is on the bag before putting the icing in. I like to put the piping bag in a tall glass or glass jar to hold it up.
Then, pour the icing into the bags. You may need to lift the tip up so the icing doesn’t spill out of it while you’re preparing the rest.
Sometimes things get messy – but in my defense, I was trying to take a picture with my left hand while pouring with my right hand, so I think I did pretty well considering! 😉
If kids are decorating
I will often make more than one bag per color if I’m hosting a cookie decorating party, or even just for my own kids, because it makes sharing much easier when there are a couple bags of each color.
Making Sugar Cookie Icing Ahead of Time
I host a cookie decorating party every year, and prefer to make the icing ahead of time. To do this, just make and color the sugar cookie frosting. Then, put it in plastic piping bags but don’t put the tips on, and remove excess air. I often will close the top of the bag with a rubberband.
Then, let the icing come to room temperature (or close), cut small holes in the tips of the piping bags and let the kids (or adults) decorate.
Use to Decorate Cut Out Sugar Cookies
Now that all your frosting is ready to go, it’s time to decorate your cookies. Put the sugar cookies on a wire cooling rack inside a baking sheet. This keeps them elevated and away from any extra frosting that drips off, and the baking sheet catches the extra frosting so you don’t make a mess.
Begin by outlining the cookie with frosting. Then, fill in most of the center. Next, use the piping tip to spread it into bare areas.
If you want to add sprinkles. do it before the icing sets.
Then, let the decorated cookies sit on the wire rack to harden for at least 3 hours, an preferably overnight before stacking.
How Long Does it Take for Sugar Cookie Frosting to Set?
- Set enough to eat. 1 hour at room temperature, 30 minutes in the refrigerator or freezer.
- Set enough to stack. 3-6 hours at room temperature (depends immensely on the temperature of your kitchen). Or 2 hours in the refrigerator, 1 hour in the freezer.
How to Store Sugar Cookie Icing
Store leftover sugar cookie icing in an airtight container – preferably a piping bag – in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Let it come to room temperature before using, then stir until smooth. If necessary, add a small amount of room-temperature milk to reach the desired consistency.
Freeze
You can freeze this sugar cookie frosting in a piping bag for up to 2 months. Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator, then let it come to room temperature and stir well before using.
How to Store Iced Sugar Cookies
Once the icing has completely hardened on the sugar cookies, store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. Place parchment or wax paper between layers to protect the designs.
Freeze Decorated Cookies
You can also freeze decorated sugar cookies. Make sure the icing is completely hardened, then layer the cookies in an airtight container with parchment or wax paper between each layer. Freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
Recipes To Decorate With This Sugar Cookie Icing
You can use this icing on many different recipes, obviously it was made to be used on my cut-out sugar cookie recipe! But here are a handful of suggestions:
- Add a drizzle or design on these no roll sugar cookies.
- Decorate the best cut out sugar cookies!
- Or add some flare to these shortbread cookies.
- Use it to pipe cute designs on these gingerbread man cookies, or on my soft gingerbread cookies.
- Or use it instead of buttercream frosting on my sugar cookie bars.
Sugar Cookie Icing Recipe FAQS
The icing will begin to set quickly, but I recommend letting the decorated cookies sit at room temperature for several hours, or preferably overnight, before stacking them. The exact drying time depends on how thickly the frosting is applied and the temperature and humidity in your kitchen.
The light corn syrup in this recipe helps the sugar cookie icing set with a smooth, shiny finish. For the best results, follow the recipe as written and let the decorated cookies sit uncovered at room temperature until the frosting is completely hardened.
If your icing isn’t hardening, you may have added too much milk, the frosting may be too thickly applied, or it may simply need more time to set. Humidity can also increase the drying time. Let the cookies sit uncovered at room temperature until the icing is completely dry. Or put them in the fridge or freezer to speed up the process.
If the frosting is too thin, add powdered sugar 1 Tablespoon at a time until it reaches your desired consistency. You want the icing to be thick enough to hold its shape when piped, but still easy to spread over the cookies.
If your sugar cookie icing is too thick, add room-temperature milk ½ teaspoon at a time until it reaches the desired consistency. A little milk goes a long way, so add it slowly to avoid making the frosting too runny.
I don’t recommend omitting it from this recipe. Light corn syrup helps the icing become smooth and shiny and harden beautifully. If you don’t want to use corn syrup, I suggest making my vanilla icing instead.
Royal icing is made with egg whites or meringue powder and has a very hard finish. This sugar cookie icing doesn’t require egg whites or meringue powder and is much easier to make. It still pipes beautifully and hardens enough to stack the cookies once it’s completely set.
No, decorated sugar cookies made with this icing do not need to be refrigerated. Once the frosting has completely hardened, store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature.
Yes! Once the sugar cookie frosting has completely hardened, transfer the decorated cookies to an airtight container with parchment or wax paper between the layers and freeze them for up to 2 months. Thaw the cookies at room temperature before serving.
If you make and love my recipes, it would mean so much to me if you would leave a comment and rating! And don’t forget to follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube – be sure to tag @joyfoodsunshine and use the hashtag #joyfoodsunshine so I can see your creations!
Easy Sugar Cookie Icing Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 3 Tablespoons whole milk (room temperature)
- 2 ½ Tablespoons light corn syrup
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Gel food coloring
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, whole milk, corn syrup and vanilla extract until smooth.
- If the frosting isn’t thin enough, add more milk ½ Tablespoon at a time until you reach your desired consistency.
- Divide the frosting into bowls. Add gel food coloring and stir to combine,
- Put the colored icing into piping bags with small round tips (or your preferred tip).
- Put cut out sugar cookies on a wire rack on a baking sheet and decorate the cookies.
- Let the icing harden at room temperature for at least 3 hours, or in the refrigerator or freezer for 1 hour.
- Make sure the frosting is hardened before stacking and storing.
Notes
- Powdered sugar. This is the main ingredient of the icing, I don’t recommend substitutions.
- Whole milk. Heavy cream or half and half are good substitutes. Make sure it’s room temperature – cold milk will be harder to mix into the powdered sugar, so you’ll be tempted to add more to get it to a smooth consistency. But if you do this, the frosting will be too thin and runny as the milk comes to room temperature. For the perfect sugar cookie icing consistency, start with room-temperature milk and add more only if necessary.
- Light corn syrup. This is the secret to sugar cookie icing that hardens with a beautiful shine. I don’t recommend leaving it out of this recipe. If you’re looking for an icing without corn syrup, try my vanilla icing instead.
- Vanilla extract. Pure vanilla – no imitation – always.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
