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A guide to colouring foods
Marrying the increased appeal of clean label with the continued desire for visually attractive products, three experts discuss the rise of natural colouring foods.
It is often said that we eat with our eyes, making colour one of the most important factors for judging the quality of a food product.
Colouring food dates back centuries; a technique used by our ancestors to make morsels more appealing and enhance its perceived quality. For example, the characteristic yellow hue of rice was obtained by adding saffron. By the end of the 19th century, in the USA and Europe, the use of colour additives in the food industry was an ingrained habit with popular products such as ketchup, mustard and sodas featuring artificial colourants like cochineal (E 120), tartrazine (E 102) and caramel IV (E 150d), respectively on their labels. The use of synthetic dyes rapidly increased due to their lower costs, ease of production, and greater colouring strength and stability compared to natural-derived additives. However, with time, safety concerns mounted and artificial colourants became a hotly debated topic. 1
Consequently, they were gradually replaced by more natural colourants derived from plants and insects, although the use of chemicals, such as organic solvents (eg, methanol, hexane), is still commonplace during production. As a result, the ‘naturalness’, sustainability and healthiness of the resulting product can be disputed. Today, consumers are demanding clean labels (without additives) and sustainable food products. As such, colouring foods represent a promising alternative to colour additives.
What are colouring foods?
Colouring foods simply refers to food with colouring properties; they are usually derived from vegetables, fruits and edible plants that are naturally rich in pigments, such as carrots, pumpkins and blueberries. 2
They are manufactured using non-chemical (enzymatic) and physical processes to extract the colouring pigments from the raw materials. These processes include washing, chopping, pressing, filtering, separating, concentrating, pasteurising and drying, wherein water is used as the preferred processing solvent. 2 With these physical processes, the colouring pigments are not selectively extracted from the source material, so the colouring foods retain their inherent characteristics such as flavour, as well as their protein, sugar and lipid contents. 3
Typically, colouring foods are in the form of colour-intensive viscous concentrates or powders. Since colouring foods are still food and can be consumed as such, they are labelled as ingredients and there are no dosage restrictions in a food product.
Additive food colours vs. colouring foods
Although ‘food colour’ (synthetic or natural) and ‘colouring foods’ have similar sounding names, they are different under EU regulation. Within Regulation (EC) No. 1333/2008, food colours are classified as food additives, while colouring foods are not, since they are, by definition, “normally consumed as food in itself” or “normally used as a characteristic ingredient of food”. 2,4
“Unlike colouring foods, additive food colours are made by selective extraction of pigment and formulation with a cocktail of other agents.
Unlike colouring foods, additive food colours are made by selective extraction of pigment and formulation with a cocktail of other agents such as emulsifiers and preservatives, among others. To further guide manufacturers, the EU released the “Guidance Notes on the Classification of Food Extracts with Colouring Properties” in 2014, which provides criteria for deciding whether a colour extract is a food additive or a colouring food.5 Additive food colours have to be labelled as colour additives together with their E-number or their corresponding name (ie, colour: E102, or colour: tartrazine; colour: E120, or colour: carmine), while colouring foods are included in the ingredients list based on the source material (ie, yellow carrot concentrate, elderberry extract, grape juice, etc). 2
Guide to making mauve food coloring
Welcome to my blog. I create and share Allergen Free and Special Diet recipes (Paleo/Keto/Vegerarian and Vegan) to provide delicious options so no one is ever left out! Food is happiness and you’ll find a lot of that here!
Nov 15
Nov 15 The Ultimate Guide to Making Vibrant Natural Dye Free Food Coloring & Frosting!
We pulled out ALL the stops with this natural food coloring project! I bought so many fruits and vegetables and various products and TRIED IT ALL! Literally I think we boiled 30 different combinations of things to find out the best of the best combinations to make the most beautiful colors possible and we NAILED IT.
This post is brought to you thanks to my fine arts degree that I will be paying off for the rest of life life. At least it helped me create these gorgeous colors!
Some tips and notes (PLEASE READ):
- Don’t let your Fruit/ veggies boil for too long or all the concentrated water will evaporate (very quickly!). If this happens, don’t worry, just add more water and boil again. Keep in mind that the more you boil, the more intense the color. Keep an eye on your water and find a happy medium!
- If you are making FROSTING with this food coloring- count the concentrated water that creates the color as part of the liquid (replacing it for the as milk or water in recipes) in your frosting recipe to avoid your frosting becoming too liquidy. The end result is a colored water that isn’t quite as concentrated as the food coloring you buy from the store which is why it needs to not just be an add on like you can do with regular food coloring- it needs to replace the liquid in recipes.
- I know you’re wondering if these vegetable waters are adding any unusual flavors to your sweet frosting. They are not!! You can every so slightly taste a little flavor on a few but it’s not overpowering. But feel free to add a little extra flavor to your frosting with vanilla beans or extracts. If you go crazy adding extra turmeric though.. the flavor will start to get yuck. There’s a fine line in how much turmeric you can get away with.
- Colors will be most vibrant when using organic powdered sugar or powdered xylitol in your frosting. You want sugar that is pure white..otherwise the color of the sugar will muddy up the color from the natural food coloring. If you are strictly avoiding Powdered sugar or Powdered Xylitol (Or powdered swerve) Your next best option is powdered honey, but they will add a yellow tint to your frosting.
- You could make your colored vegetable waters ahead of time by storing them in ice cube trays and thawing when you’re ready to make frosting. Because they are all natural they will not stay fresh in the fridge or at room temperature long term- but if you freeze the concentrated colored water- then you could thaw it out as needed to add to frosting or other recipes.
- These recipes have not been tested in baked goods. If you’re using beet water in baking (such as for red velvet cake) make sure to add a little lemon juice to the beet water so it does not react with the baking soda in the cake recipe.
- Turmeric powder is your best friend here. It looks orange at first, but actually works to brighten your colors as you stir!
Here is how to make 7 different beautiful colors using ONLY fruits and vegetables!
Orange
Add 1 cup chopped red beet stems, leaves removed (or the stems from 1 bunch of red beets), 2 tbsp peeled and finely chopped or grated red beets, and 1 tsp turmeric powder to a small pot and add enough water to cover the ingredients. Stir together, boil for ~30 minutes, and strain. The water becomes a concentrated orange color. To ¾ cup of frosting, add 2 tsp of this orange water, 2 tspdry turmeric powder, and the zest of 1 orange OR ¼ tsp orange extract for a subtle orange flavor. Mix.
Purple
Add 4-8 finely chopped or grated purple cabbage leaves (4 leaves for a pastel purple, 8 for a darker purple), and ¼ cup fresh or frozen cranberries to a medium pot and add enough water to cover the ingredients. Boil for ~40 minutes and mash the cranberries as they start to ‘pop.’ Strain. Add 2 tsp of the purple water to ¾ cup of frosting and mix.
Note: If you do not want cranberry seeds in your frosting, strain the cabbage/cranberry mixture through a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth.
Green
Add ~1 cup finely chopped or grated yellow/golden beets (skins on) to a medium pot, add enough water to cover the beets, and boil for ~30 minutes. Strain.
Then Per ¾ cup frosting you will then need to add 1.5 tbsp yellow beet juice, ¼ tsp ceremonial grade matcha, ¼ tsp turmeric powder and mix.
Note: It is important to use ceremonial grade matchafor the best green color.
Yellow
Add ~1 cup finely chopped or grated yellow/golden beets (skins on) to a medium pot, add enough water to cover the beets, and boil for ~30 minutes. Strain.
Then Per ¾ cup frosting, add 2 tbsp yellow beet juice, 1 tsp turmeric powder and the zest of 1 lemon OR ¼ tsp lemon extract for a subtle lemon flavor. Mix.
Pink
For a pastel pink, add ~1 cup of finely chopped or grated and peeled red beets to a small pot, add enough water to cover the beets, and boil for ~30 minutes. Strain. To ¾ cup frosting, add as much beet water as needed for desired color, starting with 1 tsp increments. Keep in mind that the more liquid you add, the more liquidy your frosting will become.
For hot pink, add ~1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries to a small pot, add enough water to cover the cranberries, and boil for ~30 minutes. Mash cranberries as they start to ‘pop.’ Strain. If you do not want cranberry seeds in your frosting, strain the cranberry mixture through a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth. To ¾ cup frosting, add as much cranberry water as needed for desired color, starting with 1 tsp increments.
Note: Add more powdered sugar or powdered xylitol to your frosting if it becomes too liquidy.
Red
Add ~1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries and ~1 cup finely chopped or grated and peeled red beets to a medium pot, add enough water to cover the ingredients, and boil for ~30 minutes. Strain. If you do not want cranberry seeds in your frosting, strain the beet/cranberry mixture through a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth. To ¾ cup frosting, add 2.5 tbsp beet/cranberry water and mix.
Note: This recipe yields a gorgeous raspberry red color (you will never get a true red color). To achieve a substantial color, you are going to need to add a fair amount of beet/cranberry water to your frosting. Add extra powdered sugar or xylitol to balance the liquid if necessary.
Sky Blue
Add 4 finely chopped or grated red cabbage leaves to a small pot and cover with water. Boil for ~30 minutes and strain. Add baking sodato the red cabbage water in ¼ tsp increments until you achieve a blue hue. To ¾ cup frosting, add 1 tbsp plus 1 tsp of this cabbage/baking soda water and mix.
Color Variations:
Blue Green: add ¼ tsp ceremonial grade matcha to the Sky Blue base.
Sea Green: add ¼ tsp turmeric to the Sky Blue base.
Pastel Concord Grape: mix equal parts Purple base to Sky Blue base.
Sunset Orange: mix equal parts Red base to Orange base.
Ps. If you are looking for some allergen free sugar cookie recipes- I have a BUNCH for you! I tried to cover all the most common allergies and diets.
- Scoop & Bake Sugar Cookies! (Gluten/Grain/Dairy/Nut Free)
- Rice Flour Sugar Cookies! (Gluten/ Dairy/ Soy/ Nut/ Coconut/ Egg Free & Vegan)
- AIP Sugar Cookies (Gluten/Grain/Egg/Refined Sugar Free)
- Egg Free Loft House Style Cookies! (Grain/ Nut/ Dairy/ Egg/ Soy Free, Modified Paleo & Vegan)
- Grain Free Cut-out Pumpkin Sugar Cookies! (Grain/Egg/Dairy Free with Sugar free directions)
- Keto Cut-out Sugar Cookies. (Grain/Gluten/Egg/Soy/Dairy Free)
- Grinch Sugar Cookies. (Gluten/ Grain/ Egg/ Nut/ Dairy Free)
PSS. I have an IMPORTANT note:
Social media these days has taken a major DIVE and the majority of you that follow my FB business page and Instagram page see very little of what I post! This makes it hard for your guys to receive the free content you wanted to see!
Yellow
One of this worlds most incredible superfoods, turmeric is the answer to all of your golden food dreams.
Add a teensy bit to give you a pastel yellow or a tsp or so to give you a deep golden yellow. Be careful though, this stuff stains eeerrrthang!
Also, whilst you are here, make sure you check out my recipe for The Perfect Turmeric Latte – it’s absolutely blinking delicious!
Orange and Red
For orange, go heavy on the turmeric, of if you are looking to go deeper into the reds, try a tiny pinch of beetroot powder as well as turmeric. This will give you a warm and fuzzy sunset glow.
As with all of these powders, if you are wanting a smoother finish, be sure to dissolve them in a little warm water first.
Black
Activated charcoal is the go-to for black food colouring – it’s so strong in fact you might even struggle to get grey (if thats what you are going for)! You need only the smallest amount to give you a deep, spooky black.
Run free my little unicorn-bakers and HAVE FUN!
Tara
Hi, I’m Tara! I’m taking you on a trip around the world in vegan cuisine and bringing the world’s most delicious dishes to your kitchen.
