Easter: To Dye For
Source of Recipe
Food Network
Long before the Easter bunny, Medieval cooks dyed eggs with natural ingredients and gave them as gifts to celebrate the season. Eggs, forbidden during Lent, were a welcome sight on holy Sunday. Try dyeing with traditional natural colors, a refreshing alternative to the jarringly bright colors of commercial dyes.
The rich colors of natural dyes can be coaxed from the most unassuming items in your vegetable bin or spice rack. Humble ingredients--such as red cabbage, onion skins, paprika and coffee--can produce understatedly elegant and often unexpected colors when used as dyeing materials.
Dyes:
Here are some suggestions to get you started with natural dyes. This amount of dye will color approximately six eggs. The only limitations on experimentation are the contents of your refrigerator, pantry and even your backyard--remember to use edible plants! As with any eggs, be sure to keep dyed eggs refrigerated and don't eat eggs that have been at room temperature for more than two hours.
Color Source:
Orange- Paprika--four tablespoons per quart of water
Blue- Surprisingly, red cabbage--about four cups, shredded, per quart of water
Red- Pomegranate juice in place of water or four cups red onion skins
Pink- Cranberry juice in place of water or four cups shredded beets per quart of water
Green- Spinach (fresh or frozen), four cups per quart of water
Ocher- Onion skins--four cups of the dry outer skins
Mocha- Use one quart of strongly brewed coffee in place of water
How To:
There are two ways to color eggs with natural dyes: boiling and cold dipping. Boiling allows dyes to penetrate the eggshell and results in darker, more even colors. The cold-dip method can be better if you want to eat the eggs and safer when children are helping out.
Boil Method:
Place 6-8 eggs in a single layer in a large pot and add enough water to cover eggs by one inch. Add some white vinegar (2 tablespoons per quart of water). Add dye ingredients (up to 4 cups vegetable solids or 3-4 tablespoons of a colorful spice, like paprika or turmeric, per quart of water or replace water with any all-liquid ingredient) and bring to a boil. Turn heat to low and simmer for 20-30 minutes. The motion of the eggs in the boiling water ensures that the color will be even on the egg. The resulting egg will be very hard-boiled and inedible, as it picks up the flavor of the dye.
Cold-Dip Method:
Combine dye materials, vinegar and water, in the same proportions as the boil method above, in a large pot. Simmer 20-30 minutes, then strain and cool. Dip hard-boiled eggs in cold dye until desired color is achieved, soaking anywhere from 5 minutes to several hours in the refrigerator. Turn eggs occasionally to ensure even dyeing. Dry on paper towels or in egg cartons.
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