Stencil-Painted Cookies | Royal Icing Effects Made Easy

In this tutorial: What You'll Need · Prepare the Fondant–Chocolate Base · Attach the Stencil and Roll · Mix Your Luster Dust Paint · Paint the Flower Design · Cut and Apply to the Cookie · Paint a Lion Design (Cake Stencil on a Cookie) · Final Tips

Stenciled cookies don't have to mean royal icing smeared over a pattern. In this tutorial, Chef Alan Tetreault demonstrates a painting technique that uses edible luster dust mixed with lemon extract to hand-paint stencil designs directly onto fondant – creating cookies with beautiful, multi-toned detail that anyone can achieve. He walks through two complete projects – a floral rose cookie using a traditional cookie stencil and a lion cookie using a cake-side stencil – proving that you don't need to be a painter to get stunning results.

What You'll Need

• Fondant – white or colored, depending on the design; mixed 50/50 with sculpting chocolate for best results
• Sculpting chocolate – such as FondaRific sculpting chocolate; prevents stretching when lifting the fondant disc onto the cookie
• Cookie stencils – traditional cookie-sized stencils or individual elements from cake-side stencils
• Hybrid luster dust – such as the Alan Tetreault Hybrid Luster Dust line; FDA-approved and edible, with a nice shine
• Lemon extract – used to mix with the luster dust to create paint (clear alcohol like vodka or Everclear also works)
• Fine paint brushes – small detail brushes (size 0 or 00) for detailed work; the Alan Tetreault acrylic paint brushes have durable plastic handles that won't crack or flake
• Wide brush – for applying shortening to the fondant surface
• White vegetable shortening (Crisco) – a thin layer helps the stencil adhere to the fondant
• Corn syrup or piping gel – acts as adhesive to attach the finished fondant disc to the cookie
• Cookie cutters – use the same size/shape cutter used to cut the cookies
• Cornstarch – for dusting the board and rolling pin to prevent sticking
• Rolling pin
• Baked cookies – pre-baked sugar cookies or your preferred recipe
• Paper towels – for blotting brushes between colors

Prepare the Fondant–Chocolate Base

▶ Watch this section (1:48)

The key to this technique is using a 50/50 mixture of fondant and sculpting chocolate rather than fondant alone. Pure fondant is stretchy and can distort when lifted and placed onto a cookie. Adding sculpting chocolate eliminates the stretchiness and also makes the cookie taste better.

1. Knead equal parts fondant and sculpting chocolate together until fully combined.
2. Dust the work surface and rolling pin lightly with cornstarch.
3. Roll the mixture out slightly thicker than the desired final thickness – it will thin out when the stencil is rolled in.

Attach the Stencil and Roll

▶ Watch this section (3:23)

1. Using a wide brush, apply a very light coating of white vegetable shortening to the center of the rolled fondant surface.
2. Place the stencil directly onto the shortening – it will adhere and stay in place during painting.
3. Roll over the stencil from the center outward. This thins the fondant to the correct cookie-topping thickness and causes the fondant to pop up through the stencil openings, creating a slightly raised design.

Mix Your Luster Dust Paint

▶ Watch this section (4:44)

1. Place a small amount of luster dust powder into a bottle cap or small container.
2. Add just one or two drops of lemon extract (or clear alcohol) at a time – the mixture should not be runny.
3. Mix with a fine brush, then blot the brush on a paper towel before painting.

The alcohol in the lemon extract evaporates quickly, so add a couple of drops at a time as needed. A little luster dust goes a long way.

Paint the Flower Design

▶ Watch this section (5:44)

Chef Alan demonstrates a floral rose stencil using layered colors to create depth and dimension:

1. Start with the lightest color first. Paint the rose buds with a light pink, covering the full petal areas.
2. Layer a darker pink on top, accenting the inner portions of the petals and adding shadows. Going over areas more than once deepens the color.
3. Paint the leaves and tendrils with a light green (Honeydew), covering all the green sections.
4. Add a darker green (Apple Green) over select areas to create movement and contrast.
5. Blend if needed – go back with the lighter pink to soften or diffuse any areas where the dark pink feels too strong.

Cut and Apply to the Cookie

▶ Watch this section (9:22)

1. Lift the stencil carefully – hold the fondant down with one hand and peel the stencil up from the back. The shortening will make it grip, so work gently.
2. Make sure the fondant disc moves freely on the board.
3. Using the same cutter used to cut the cookies, center it over the painted design and press straight down. A scalloped cutter adds a decorative edge, or use a plain round.
4. Brush a thin layer of corn syrup or piping gel onto the top of the baked cookie – it doesn't need to cover the entire surface, just enough sticky spots for the fondant to adhere.
5. Carefully lift the fondant disc and center it on the cookie. Press gently to set.

Paint a Lion Design (Cake Stencil on a Cookie)

▶ Watch this section (11:30)

For the second cookie, Chef Alan uses a larger cake-side stencil to demonstrate that cookie stencils are not the only option. Any stencil with elements sized to fit a cookie will work – just check that individual design elements aren't too tall.

1. Roll out the fondant–chocolate mixture (white this time), apply shortening, place the stencil, and roll from the center out – just as before.
2. Start with copper luster dust – paint the eyes, mouth, and a few shadow accents around the face, feet, and mane tips.
3. Let the copper dry briefly, then go back and add a second layer to deepen the color.
4. Fill in with canary yellow across the body, mane, and remaining areas.
5. Go back over the ears with additional yellow for more intensity.
6. Accent with Sunburst Orange along the back of the legs and other edges to create depth.
7. Add green at the base for the grass area, painting slightly beyond where the cutter will land to ensure full coverage.
8. Remove the stencil, cut with a round cutter, apply corn syrup to the cookie, and place the fondant disc.

Final Tips

▶ Watch this section (18:35)

• You don't need to be a painter. The stencil does the hard work – simply fill in the areas with color and let the layering create dimension.
• Don't limit yourself to cookie stencils. Cake-side stencils offer hundreds of additional design options – just pick one element that fits the cookie size.
• Size matters more than category. When shopping for stencils, focus on the size of the individual design elements rather than whether it's labeled as a cookie stencil or cake stencil.
• Use size 0 or 00 brushes for detailed work. Acrylic-handle brushes hold up better than wood-handle brushes with repeated washing.
• This technique also works on cake sides, though it's more challenging since the stencil must adhere vertically.
• Three to four colors are enough to achieve a beautiful, three-dimensional painted effect.

This tutorial is part of Global Sugar Art's library of free cake decorating videos by Chef Alan Tetreault. Browse all tutorials →