I often get asked by ladies how do I get such a beautiful deep red royal icing so I thought that I would share some tips.

The Red Colouring that I use:

• Cake Flora Super Red – Gel colouring
• Rolkem Concentrated Pillar Box Red – Concentrated powder colouring.

Getting the perfect red can  be a  tricky.  If there is one thing I have learnt over the years, is that we all battle getting that perfect red. I thought I would share a few tips (that have worked for me) on getting the perfect red.

There is no need to add a whole bottle of red colour gel to get a deep red colour, if you do add too much colouring, your icing will be saturated with colour which causes ‘colour bleeding.’  Colour bleeds are when a  brighter colour icing runs into a lighter colour icing. Too much colouring can also make the icing taste funny. The less red you can add the better.

1. Start by adding a drop of super red gel colour and then add Rolkem Pillar box red concentrated powder to your royal icing. Add water and mix.  You will end up with a deep orange coral looking colour.  I know this isn’t the colour you wanting but read on….

2. I add a spoon of mixed up blue icing or a toothpick prick of sky blue gel colour.  Adding the blue helps to deepen the tone of red. This is an option, it depends on the red you are looking for.

3. Patience is key, you now need to let the colour develop and deepen. Remember all colours deepen over time.  The best advice I can give is to let your red icing sit for about 24 hours.  It goes from orange red to a proper red.  If it still doesn’t look red enough, then add more super red gel.

Happy baking and biscuit making

Ashleigh