Many food dyes on sale are not just made from dodgy chemicals. But several are also made from animal ingredients. For instance, most red and pink food dyes on sale are made from carmine/cochineal (red insects). This Vegan Strawberry Frosting (Rainbow Nourishments) uses freeze-dried strawberry powder.
Homemade food dyes should last quite a few days, if you keep them in an airtight container in the fridge. Always check they are fresh, before use.
Before using food dyes, read up on food safety for people and pets. Avoid (pink) hibiscus powder, for pregnancy/nursing and check medication before consuming spirulina. Obviously keep cocoa powder away from pets.
The main natural plants used to dye foods are:
- Matcha is a Japanese powder to turn things green. It’s very strong so you only need a little, which is good as it’s green tea, so makes things taste of grass! The authors suggest adding a little cinnamon to mask the taste (matcha is good in tea, doesn’t taste so good in cake).
- Beetroot powder can turn foods pink or red. It’s better than beetroot juice, which can change the texture, and won’t make things as pink.
- Acai is a superfood berry to turn things purple. You only need a tiny amount (so the amount of superfoods you get is low, but the colour is a lot). It even leaves pretty purple flecks.
- Turmeric is a spice to turn things yellow (it’s often used by vegans to make ‘scrambled egg and omelettes’). You can add a little beet powder or juice to turn this dye orange. Again turmeric has a strong (curry) flavour, so add a little cinnamon if wished, for sweet recipes.
- Culinary Charcoal powder is used to make things black. Not everyone wants a black cake, but there is a market out there for goth teenager birthdays or people who commercial bake items for ‘ghoulish’ themed parties.
This blueberry frosting (Rainbow Nourishments) is a stunning way to ice your cakes and bakes, naturally coloured with real blueberries. You can use fresh or frozen blueberries, which you boil to a thick paste, then add to your buttercream made with vegan butter, real vanilla essence and organic egg-free icing sugar. The recipe makes enough frosting to decorate a double-layered cake or a batch of vegan cupcakes.
Where to Buy Natural Vegan Food Dyes
Raw Nice is a brand of natural vegan food dyes, in brown paper packaging. Loved by tens of thousands of people, these have no taste, so are ideal for smoothies and cakes. Just scoop and stir.
The range includes:
- Curcumin (yellow)
- Beetroot (pink)
- Purple sweet potato
- Matcha (green)
