Homemade Sprinkles

Line 2-3 baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside.

Make the royal icing for your sprinkle base

Place the confectioner’s sugar, meringue powder and 2 tablespoons of water in a mixer with a whisk attachment. Beat on low till the ingredients are incorporated, adding more water a bit at a time if the mixture is very dry or crumbly. Raise the speed to high and beat for 5 minutes. The icing will be very stiff; do not add any more water at this point.

Divide the icing into as many bowls as you want colors. Cover each bowl with a barely damp paper towel (lightly pressing the towel to the surface of the icing) to prevent drying.

Working with one bowl at a time, start by adding 1/2 teaspoon of your food coloring. [Please provide measurements you used for the colors photographed - with caveat that colors will/can vary]

Prepping for piping

Assess the consistency and add more water—a small bit at a time and stirring well after each addition. You will be piping through a very small tip so if the icing is too stiff you won’t be able to easily pipe. But you don’t want the icing to be too loose or it will not hold its shape when piped. If you think toothpaste you’ll be on the right track.

Fit a disposable pastry bag with a small plain metal tip and fill with your tinted icing. You can also use a heavy duty Ziploc bag with a small opening snipped in the corner. Practice a few lines on a sheet of wax paper before you begin, to make sure that the icing is not too stiff to pipe or too loose to hold its shape. You can return the icing to your bowl and add either more water or confectioner’s sugar to adjust.

Pipe and set overnight

Pipe long lines onto your prepared baking sheet, spacing them as close together as possible. Don’t worry about breaks or squiggles, your sprinkles will look great in the end! Once you’ve used up all of the icing repeat this process with your remaining colors. Let dry completely overnight.

Crush or cut

You’ll know the sprinkles are ready to cut if you can easily remove one of the lines from the baking sheet. There are two ways to cut your sprinkles. The first is to use a large knife or bench scraper to chop the lines. This method can cause some of the sprinkles to go flying off the sheet but gives you the most control if you want sprinkles of a uniform length. The other is to roll up the parchment paper with the sprinkles still attached, and gently crush with your hands to break them up.

expiry
Sprinkles can be stored, at room temperature in an airtight container, for a year.

When assessing the consistency of the icing for piping, if you think toothpaste you’ll be on the right track.

If you don't own a piping bag and tip, you can also use a heavy duty Ziploc bag with a small opening snipped in the corner.

**Pastry Bag Note: There are actually 3 options here—a disposable pastry bag with a small opening snipped in the bottom, a disposable pastry bag fitted with a small plain metal tip, or a sturdy ziploc bag with a small opening snipped in the bottom. There is no recommended tip size for sprinkles— that’s the beauty of homemade! You can have thin, traditional looking sprinkles or chunky ones, based on the size of the tip! Experiment to learn what you prefer, or adjust the tip size based on how the sprinkles will be used.