That christmas cake icing that breaks your teeth - how do you make it?

[Hassledge]

I don't want any of that fondanty bollocks - I want the old fashioned "could hold up a house" stuff. Delia hasn't been my mate - last year's was way too soft. Does anyone have a failsafe method please?

It is called royal icing. I think it is icing sugar and egg white but don't know for sure.

I don't know but it sounds nice.

Sorry - I should have explained more. I've played around with royal icing for years - you can even buy royal icing sugar. But it's never the same as the icing of my youth, there's always a softness to it I don't want/like.

Thank you though :)

I will try to remember to ask my mum what she did then as it was always like concrete - you had to suck it into submission.

That's just what I want! Pleeeease ask her for me :o.

Mum used to do leftover 'swirls' on a plate. Like little rocks sweeties

I think you have to leave it a while. And Royal Icing sounds familiar

We also had the rock-hard icing as kids, traditionally christmas cake uses Royal icing. A quick search, it looks like Delia adds glycerine, this would possibly keep it softer, try the basic egg whites, icing sugar and a bit of lemon juice instead. Good luck!

Don't put glycerine in it

x post with smallerclanger

I will try hard to remember - invest in dental insurance first though please :)

Leave it out to dry out. You can cover it loosely with cling film but let the air get to it and your central heating system should dry it out for you.
(I prefer it with a drop of glycerin to preserve my molars)

Many thanks all - will drop the glycerine and not rush it.

And beat it (in the Kenwood Chef is best ) for much longer than the packet says...I usually double the reccomended time.

Me and the kids were delegated the job of icing the Christmas cake after my nan (many years of culinary disasters!) managed to weld the wall unit doors shut by not beating the icing for nearly long enough.....it ran off the cake and literally sealed the doors shut by Boxing Day

Also - extra lemon juice makes it harder. There is a funny wedding photo of my parents trying to cut their wedding cake and failing because my mother made the cake and put lots of lemon juice in the icing to make sure it supported the top tier but went a bit too far.

I made royal icing last year, glycerine and all and it was rock hard. It looked very beautiful but was a nightmare to cut ( we often start ours before Christmas to give to visitors - I make a big one and I like it to stay looking nice ) and tbh, a nightmare to eat too.

Fondant from now on for me.

Oooh - my Mum and I put peppermint flavouring in the leftover icing and make little mints. If we are feeling really festive we add green food colouring too.