Natural Egg Dye Recipes
This Easter try coloring eggs the natural way. Use hard cooked brown or white eggs. After eggs are cooked, quickly cool the water or rinse in cold water. This helps to prevent "greening" of the yolk. Natural dyes take a bit longer to color the egg, so plan on extra time, or leave the eggs in the refrigerator overnight.
| Natural Colorant | Egg Color | Directions | Hints |
|---|---|---|---|
| turmeric powder | bright yellow to deep gold | Put -1-2 tsp. ground turmeric powder in heat proof cup. Fill 2/3 full with boiling water. Add 1 tsp. white vinegar. | Works quickly. Turmeric stains so be careful. Wipe dusty spice residue from eggs. |
| chopped red cabbage | blue/teal | Put 2-3 tbsps. chopped red cabbage in heat safe cup. Add boiling water. Add 1 tsp. white vinegar. | Let sit overnight. Avoid excess handling. |
| onion skins, yellow | light peach to gold/orange | Use 1 large handful of onion skin for each cup of water. Simmer 20 minutes then add 1 tsp. of white vinegar. | A perennial favorite. Easy. |
| grape juice | blue to purple | Add 1 cup frozen juice concentrate to 1 tsp. vinegar. | Eggs may be simmered right in the juice to cook. |
| grated red beets | magenta red | Put 2-4 tbsps. freshly grated beets in heat safe cup. Fill 2/3 with boiling water. Add 1 tsp. white vinegar. | Speckled design. Dye may be strained before use. Orange beets may be used to obtain saffron color. |
| red cabbage & turmeric | green | Pour scant tsp. of turmeric and 2-3 tbsps. of chopped red cabbage in a heat safe cup then add boiling water. | Speckled design. Wipe vegetable off with damp cloth. |
| red cabbage & beet | purple | Put 2 tbsps. grated beet and 2 tbsps. red cabbage in heat safe cup. Add boiling water. | Striking and intense. |
| onion skins, red | pale celadron green | See directions for yellow onion skins. | Allow long steeping time. |
An average egg contains 65 calories, 6 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat and 6 grams of protein. They are also a good source for riboflavin, iron, and vitamins A and D. Even though eggs contain 212 grams of dietary cholesterol, new studies have found that an average egg raises the blood cholesterol level by only 3 mg. in most people.