Defining: Icing, Frosting, and Glazes.

Figuring out which is which has driven me absolutely nuts over the years. So, what’s the answer?

There isn’t one. While most people can agree on what a glaze is, frosting and icing are essentially interchangeable even within the profession. But, since this is my blog and I like to make these things official, I’m going to give general definitions for all of these.

Glaze: A very thin topper. Can be either sweet, or savory–such as egg white used on breads and rolls to add gloss and crunch. As I’m allergic to egg that probably won’t come up much. However, sweet glazes almost certainly well. They’re typically somewhat syrupy in consistency. Consider the white, sugary glaze on some donuts and twisty pastries.
Icing: Midway between the two, not as thick as frosting. Will thicken and became somewhat hard. Like the chocolate used on donuts.

Frosting: Thick and creamy. The classic frosting. Remains fluffy. Prevalent on cakes and cupcakes.

There are, of course, umpteen more uses for, and styles of, frostings. These are just to give you a general idea of what sort of confection we’re dealing with here. They will be used in the title, if nowhere else.

White Cake & Chocolate Icing

Tres magnifique!! The Ener-G Egg Replacer came yesterday, so I set about "making something." This of course resulted in a 20 minute session of leafing through books and reading recipes. I finally went with something easy: GF Pantry's Cake mix.
Source: Gluten-Free Pantry Old-Fashioned Cake & Cookie Mix. JustChocolateRecipes.com Icing.

Possible Allergens: Potato (mix), milk.

Modifications: Egg replacer, almond extract.

Batter Type: Wet enough not to hold a peak, sticky enough to hold swirls from a spoon or mixer.

I had one wish as I started this cake: That it not be grainy and dry. Success! It came out moist and of a good consistency–not too heavy and not too light. I considered adding a bit of lemon juice to make it a yellow cake, one of my favorites, but my mother suggested almond. Divine.

I hadn't planned the icing ahead of time. After choosing chocolate I had a wealth of recipes to choose from, and ultimately went with one that was in our recipe drawer. This icing involves melting & boiling on a stove, but it isn't very work intensive. Throw in all the ingredients and heat.

Definately a winner.

Ideal: For tea time! Would also be a great birthday cake with classic frosting. The icing is a great presentation tool as it drips and swirls nicely.