Hayley Callaway - Sweet Talk Cookies: Creative Designs for Birthdays, Holidays, and Everyday

Think of this as basically coloring in the linesjust on cookies! Usually, you will flood the cookie in whatever color you outlined it in, but that is not a hard-and-fast rule, especially if you want a black outline to make the cookie look more cartoon-y.

Your flood icing needs to be thin enough to spread itself out and touch the edge of the outline. You also want it thin so that it will make itself smooth without you having to do a lot of work. If it is too thick, it may leave holes.

You want the flood icing to stay within the boundaries of the outline. If your icing is too thin and does run over the outline, let it dry and set up. To do damage control, use a toothpick or a small knife to scrape the excess off.

For smaller spaces, flood using a smaller tip for added control and precision. Be aware that this can be time-consuming. When you are just starting, using smaller tips can also help you avoid running over the edge. I usually will not flood with anything smaller than a number 8 tip, for the sake of time.

Glaze vs. Royal Icing Flood

For this book, we are teaching you our way of decorating, using two different icings. We outline and top deco with royal icing because it dries hardwith a crunch. It is perfect for piping intricate details. We prefer an icing to cover the cookie with a softer bite and sweeter taste. That is why we make a separate recipe for the flood.

If you choose not to do this, you can flood using royal icing and thin it out. Just remember that this leaves room for making the flood too thick or too thin. If you make the glaze according to our recipe, you dont have to worry about consistency for flood: it will turn out right every time.

When flooding a larger cookie or a solid color, you may want to use your bottle without a tip. This actually helps create a thinner coat of flood icing. You can use a toothpick to push the flood into a tiny corner or to reach the edge of the outline, if needed.

We dont recommend flooding using piping bags. You can do it by tying off the top of the bag, but its messier and youll have less control over the thin flood icing. Get yourself some bottlesyou deserve it!