It's that time of year, when we demonstrate cookies! Thank goodness we manufacture the most vibrant icing colors and edible luster dust you've ever seen - that definitely gives us a leg up! In this Vlog, we'll be discussing how to adhere luster dust on cookies A LOT - Especially Gold Luster Dust! You know it's always a challenge to make edible gold luster dust into a paint, and today we have the best hack for your fully-dried royal icing cookies!
So let's start with this quick demonstration of Gold Luster Dust on fully dried Royal Icing Cookies!
Gold Luster Dust
What is Gold Luster Dust? Gold Luster Dust is a 100% Edible High-Shine Food Color, that contains the natural mineral mica. The mica inside of Edible Gold Luster Dusts are approved by the FDA for human consumption and bring that gorgeous high-shine finish to the gold toned color. When it comes to Gold Luster Dust or even Gold Edible Glitter, the most important thing to remember is that LIGHT are these two products best friend. When light hits the mineral found in these colors, it results in the shiny gold finish all sugar artists are aiming for. And what's even better? The Gold Luster Dusts manufactured by us here at The Sugar Art are 100% edible, FDA Compliant and safe for consumption!
How To Use Gold Luster Dust
Luster Dust is the first step in taking your confections to a higher, more professional look and finish. Understanding how best to apply luster dust is key, so you can elevate your confections like a pro. There are many ways to use Gold Luster Dust on your cakes, cookies and chocolate treats - and we will discuss them below.
The Sugar Art Technique: Dry Dust Gilding
Ed here, I've been professionally making cakes for about 20 years and have tried all applications with gold luster dust. My absolute favorite way to use any of our luster dusts, is what Holly taught in the very first video above.
When first applying the clear Color Solution, what you're essentially doing is laying down a liquid, edible "glue" for your luster dust or edible glitter. The gums we use inside of our formula provide the most efficient way to adhere either of these products. What I also love about this technique, is the consistent, beautiful finish you get every single time.
That does not always happen with creating an edible gold paint - which I will discuss more with you below.
As she mentions, simply paint on a clear layer of our Color Solution (this will not work with vodka or ever clear), wait 30-45 seconds and then go back in with your dry fluffy brush, and dust on that any color of luster dust you desire. This can and will work for edible glitter too, as long as you sprinkle or spray it on top.
The Color Solution For Edible Paint
$10.00
CREATE THE MOST INCREDIBLE DIY EDIBLE PAINT WITH OUR BRAND NEW FOOD COLOR PAINT SOLUTION! BEST USED WITH ELITE COLORS AND EDIBLE LUSTER DUSTS! FOR MORE INFORMATION AROUND THE PRODUCT AND FOR A VIDEO DEMONSTRATION, CLICK THE LINK BELOW! PLEASE… read more
Wedding Gold Luster Dust
$8.00
OUR BEST EDIBLE GOLD LUSTER DUST FOR CAKES, COOKIES, CHOCOLATES, & MORE! DRY-DUST THIS EDIBLE GOLD POWDER ON BAKED GOODS AND SWEET TREATS FOR A GORGEOUS SHINE! ALSO MIX THE LUXURIOUS LUSTER DUST WITH EXTRACTS & SPIRITS TO CREATE AN EDIBLE… read more
Green Pearl Edible Luster Dust
$7.00
EDIBLE IRIDESCENT GREEN LUSTER DUST! DRY-DUST ON CAKES, COOKIES, CHOCOLATES & MORE FOR A GORGEOUS SHINE! ALSO MIX THE LUXURIOUS LUSTER DUST WITH EXTRACTS & SPIRITS TO CREATE AN EDIBLE METALLIC PAINT! GRAB THE BEST PAINT BRUSH SET HERE! INCLUDES… read more
White Edible Glitter Large Spray Bottle
$25.00
Our White Diamond Edible Glitter Spray Bottle is amazing for food and drinks! Best prices on the best edible glitter for all of your cakes, cookies and desserts! This perfect edible white glitter is a very fine dust, tasteless and… read more
Rose Gold Edible Glitter Large Spray Bottle
$25.00
Our Rose Gold Edible Glitter Spray Bottle is amazing for food and drinks! Best prices on the best edible glitter for all of your cakes, cookies & desserts! This edible rose gold glitter is a very fine dust, tasteless and… read more
Painting Gold Luster Dust
The most popular application with gold luster dust is to paint it! But this can be tricky, which is why we share our Color Solution hack with you today. You can absolutely paint Gold Luster Dust by mixing it with spirits (Everclear or Vodka) or a premium product like, The Color Solution. The thing to remember when making an edible gold paint out of gold luster dust - consistency is key! This will take much trial and error as you play around with the ratios of the dust vs. the liquid carrier you choose.
Here's our favorite Gold Luster Dust Paint Tutorial (click here).
We can't discuss painting without reviewing the two key factors to obtain a good quality consistency, when you mix your gold luster dust with liquid carriers (ie. The Color Solution or spirits).
In theory you could use a distilled water or vodka, but understand that water dissolves sugar. When taking that into account, you want to have a product that will not negatively impact your confection, while accomplish that smooth satin finish you're trying to achieve. This is why it is imperative to choose a product like The Color Solution - or Everclear, which is 95% by volume, alcohol. Now remember, that alcohol will evaporate after you paint it on your confection - so it is safe to use for any gathering, because it does evaporate as it dries.
The second factor is the consistency of the actual luster dust. What you need to remember - luster dust is an insoluble naturally occurring mineral. So we use the term "carrier" because it never does fully dissolve (the luster dust). The target consistency may vary from project to project, but the fundamentals will remain the same.
The best consistency is one that will flow and maintain some "body" in your paint palette. If it's too thin, what will happen is - the liquid carrier (alcohol product) will streak on the outside of the brush, and you will need to do multiple layers to even this out. If the paint consistency is a little thicker, you will have a more opaque coverage of the metallic luster dust.
The tutorial linked above is an excellent example of what consistency we ultimately recommend, if you are trying to make an edible gold luster dust paint.
However, we will always prefer the technique we teach in the first video on this blog.
The full Video for these Christmas Cookies with Gold Luster Dust:
More Tips Working With Gold Luster Dust
Picking the Right Brush
The brush you should always choose when working with any luster dust is a soft bristle, food safe brush, that will follow the contours of your cookie or cake design. My personal favorite brushes are the round ones (both large and small) found in our Edible Paint Brush Set.
Paint Brush Set
$24.00
BEAUTIFUL CUSTOM PAINT BRUSH SET CREATED BY THE SUGAR ART! THIS SELECTION OF BRUSHES ARE DESIGNED TO MEET ALL OF YOUR PASTRY NEEDS! CUSTOM FOR CAKES, COOKIES & ALL CONFECTIONS! FROM WET TO DRY APPLICATIONS, YOU WILL FIND THE PERFECT… read more
If you are dusting luster dust on your confection, or many confections at once (ie. cookies) I would recommend our large fluffy brush. It covers more surface area in general and can especially make dusting fondant cakes or lots of cookies very easy.
Large Dusting Brush
$6.00
PREMIUM CONFECTIONARY LARGE DUSTING FLUFF BRUSH! EASIEST WAY TO APPLY EDIBLE LUSTER DUST ON CAKES, COOKIES, CHOCOLATES, MACARONS AND MORE! PERFECT FOR LARGE AREAS WITH A VERY SOFT AND STREAK FREE FINISH! TRY ON YOUR COCOA BOMBS, TOO! CHECK OUT THE #1 EDIBLE… read more
Tinting the Icing Underneath
One of the most underrated, but simple techniques is tinting your icing to either compliment or contrast the color of your confection. In this video, Holly walked you through tinting the cookie icing gold in order to elevate the gold luster dust applied, once the cookies were dry. The gold icing color unquestionable brightened the gold luster dust up, because if the light color tone. It also gave a seamless, effortless finish when doing the final dusting.
Had her icing been a different color underneath, may have given different results. A perfect example, had she used a rich brown icing color instead, when painting the luster on top - the dark brown icing would have actually given that gold luster dust an aged or vintage look. Which can also be very beautiful, but the results are completely different.
So your base color of you cookies, chocolate, cakes can either elevate the gold tone - or give it completely different characteristics once finished.
Using Gold Luster Dust As An Accent
When you use Gold Luster Dust as an accent, it can and will be more visually impactful for your confection. That Gold Shine will contrast beautifully against other matte elements on your cakes and cookies - amplifying the beautiful gold sheen you worked so hard to make. I, Ed Frys, will always recommend making the Gold Luster Dust an accent to your overall sugar piece - whether it's cookies, cakes or chocolate. Here are some beautiful photo examples below:
As our thank you for visiting, here's a free Sugar Cookie Recipe and Royal Icing Recipe!
Free Sugar Cookie Recipe:
This was shared by Ed's mother-in-law last Christmas and is very near and dear to all of our hearts. It has a rich family history and originated by Holly's great-grandmother during the Great Depression and World War Two. It really is the best recipe for your Christmas cookie decorating ideas, so please feel free to use this amazing in all of your personal sugar cookie work. However, please do not re-sell or distribute this recipe in any capacity. Scroll to review IP Notice below.
The Best Sugar Cookie Recipe Ever (Click here for blog)
What you'll need:
Gel 3.0 Food Coloring Set - 12 Colors
$60.00
Large and Unique Gel Colors for Cakes and Cookies! Powerful Gel Colors are here. Our Gel Color line is the most intense gel food color on the market! The power of Master Elites in liquid form. Achieve a vast array… read more
Gold Gel Food Color
$5.00
Gold Gel Food Coloring For Cakes and Cookies This Gold Gel Food Color is the most intense gold food color on the market! Achieve a vast array of tones from just one bottle of these gel colors in your icings,… read more
The Color Solution For Edible Paint
$10.00
CREATE THE MOST INCREDIBLE DIY EDIBLE PAINT WITH OUR BRAND NEW FOOD COLOR PAINT SOLUTION! BEST USED WITH ELITE COLORS AND EDIBLE LUSTER DUSTS! FOR MORE INFORMATION AROUND THE PRODUCT AND FOR A VIDEO DEMONSTRATION, CLICK THE LINK BELOW! PLEASE… read more
Wedding Gold Luster Dust
$8.00
OUR BEST EDIBLE GOLD LUSTER DUST FOR CAKES, COOKIES, CHOCOLATES, & MORE! DRY-DUST THIS EDIBLE GOLD POWDER ON BAKED GOODS AND SWEET TREATS FOR A GORGEOUS SHINE! ALSO MIX THE LUXURIOUS LUSTER DUST WITH EXTRACTS & SPIRITS TO CREATE AN EDIBLE… read more
Green Pearl Edible Luster Dust
$7.00
EDIBLE IRIDESCENT GREEN LUSTER DUST! DRY-DUST ON CAKES, COOKIES, CHOCOLATES & MORE FOR A GORGEOUS SHINE! ALSO MIX THE LUXURIOUS LUSTER DUST WITH EXTRACTS & SPIRITS TO CREATE AN EDIBLE METALLIC PAINT! GRAB THE BEST PAINT BRUSH SET HERE! INCLUDES… read more
White Edible Glitter Large Spray Bottle
$25.00
Our White Diamond Edible Glitter Spray Bottle is amazing for food and drinks! Best prices on the best edible glitter for all of your cakes, cookies and desserts! This perfect edible white glitter is a very fine dust, tasteless and… read more
Rose Gold Edible Glitter Large Spray Bottle
$25.00
Our Rose Gold Edible Glitter Spray Bottle is amazing for food and drinks! Best prices on the best edible glitter for all of your cakes, cookies & desserts! This edible rose gold glitter is a very fine dust, tasteless and… read more
INGREDIENTS
- 1 Cup Salted Butter
- 1 Cup Sugar
- 1 Egg
- 1 tablespoon of heavy cream
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2.5 Cups All Purpose Flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp of salt (yes, even more salt)
I N S T R U C T I O N S
Cream together butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and milk (or heavy cream)
In a separate bowl mix together flour, salt and baking powder.
Then stir dry ingredients into butter mixture. Mix well.
Roll the dough.
Cut the cookies into shapes and lay on your baking sheet.
Chill for 15 minutes.
Bake at 350 Degrees for 12 minutes.
Then rotate pan and bake for another 3-5 minutes, or until the edges are barely golden.
And voila, the best sugar cookie recipe ever is COMPLETE!
A good sugar cookie recipe is the BEST tool for your Christmas Cookie Decorating Ideas!
Free Royal Icing Recipe For Cookies
Now that you know how to make the most amazing sugar cookies ever, let's talk about the best icing for your Christmas cookie decorating ideas! We prefer to use one recipe for two consistencies - both outlining and flooding! It shorten the decorating time immensely, and if you follow Ed's exact instructions - ensuring that you reach a 15-16 second consistency at the end - you will see that this recipe is a perfect medium consistency!
So check out our favorite royal icing recipe for both flooding and outlining here:
Ed's Royal Icing Recipe
- 2 pounds of confectioner sugar (10x or greater)
- 6 tablespoons of Wilton meringue powder
- 19 tbs of ROOM TEMP water
- Mix on low - medium until you reach a 12 second consistency. This means, you will watch the icing drop down from the mixer and count the number of seconds until it is completely level inside of the bowl.
- Once at a 12-13 second consistency, cover with a damp cloth and let the icing rest for 20 minutes.
- Then on low speed, mix the icing for 30 second intervals, counting the "seconds" until you achieve a 15-16 second consistency.
- At 15 seconds, Ed and Holly both feel this is the best medium consistency for both outlining and flooding. However, feel free to mix longer if you prefer firmer icing.
- Pro Tip - If you over whipped your icing and the consistency is too firm, you can add 1 tsp of water at a time to thin it out. On the other hand, if you're icing is too thin - continue to mix.
THANK YOU & IP Notice
We appreciate your support so much and hope you enjoyed our blog on Christmas Cookie Decorating Ideas! We are thrilled to share with you a little piece of Holly's personal family history through the sugar cookie recipe and know if you give this cookie recipe a try, you will absolutely love that you did! We also firmly believe if you'll follow Ed's Royal Icing instruction - you will succeed at mastering a one-flood consistency for both outlining and flooding your Christmas Cookies!
Intellectual Property Notice:
In regards to the Sugar Cookie Recipe shared here. Please understand this sugar cookie recipe is apart of Holly's family legacy and is not permitted to be re-distributed or sold by any other persons or companies. By having it on The Sugar Art Inc.'s website, it is now copy-written and protected by Intellectual Property Law. This is a very special part of her family's history that we will protect.
Edward Frys, Owner / President
Gold Luster Dust and Holiday Cookies!
Transcript from video:
