Natural Food Colorings

Birthday Parties are such fun for children but I have rarely met a Mum who isn't concerned about all the

Chemical Food Colourings, Sugar & Junk Food that their "Little One" may consume in one or two hours 

of  partying with friends!
 Here is a recipe for Mums & Grannies out there; it's a simple vegan sponge cake (without dairy, wheat or eggs) that can
 be cut into shapes to make your child's Birthday Cake design. It is obviously not Raw,
but some of you may prefer to go for a cooked version sometimes.The frosting can be naturally coloured,
I have given you some ideas under the picture. Raw chocolates,Chocolate Nibs & raw cookies add
to any design, I also think fresh raspberries, strawberries, blueberries etc could fill the carriages below!      

• 500ml almond milk (unsweetened)
• 2 tsp cider vinegar
• 360g buckwheat flour
• 50g cornflour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 450g caster sugar or sweetener of choice
• 160ml olive oil
• 4 tsp vanilla extract
• Mix as any other cake & cook until firm to touch

 Internet picture depicts the usual type of coloured Birthday Cake decorated with sweets & biscuits                                                                                                                                              biscuits!

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• Raspberries for pale pink - gently cook fresh or frozen raspberries for a few minutes, juice through a sieve. Add 1/2 tsp at a time to icing and mix well.          
• Dark Pink/ Red from beetroot - add juice from cooked beetroots to icing 1/2 tsp at a time and mix well. 
• Purple from beetroot and bicarb soda - add juice from cooked beetroots to icing 1/2 tsp at a time and mix well. Add a small pinch of bicarb soda at a time to make more purple. The bicarb tends to keep reacting over time so leave for a few minutes before adding more.
• Dark Pink again, this time from blackberries - gently cook fresh or frozen blackberries for a few minutes then juice through a sieve. Add 1/2 tsp at a time to any frosting 
• Orange from carrots – add juice from cooked carrots to icing 1/2 tsp at a time and mix well 
• Green from spirulina – add spirulina powder to icing 1/2 tsp at a time and mix well (Spirulina is a green, leafy superfood. Spirulina powder available from health food stores)
• Green  Spinach, is possibly easier than using spirulina.. It’s super saturated and totally flavorless, making it the perfect addition to any green frosting or even green cake! If you have a high-speed blender, you can whip whole spinach leaves right into your frosting. If you’re coloring a cake, & you don’t have a high-speed blender, you’ll want to use juice.  Another grassy-hued option is liquid chlorophyl, which aside from being a healthy supplement, will impart an awesome emerald tint to your food. You can grab it at any health food store.
• Blue from blueberries – gently cook fresh or frozen blueberries for a few minutes then juice through a sieve. Add 1/2 tsp at a time to icing and mix well. Add a small pinch of bicarb soda at a time to change the purple colour to blue. The bicarb tends to keep reacting over time so leave for a few minutes before adding more
• Yellow  Look no further than your spice rack for all your golden, citrine, and sunshine-y needs. Saffron or turmeric powder have both got you covered, but be careful! These spices are extra strong. A little goes a long way, so start veeeerry small and test as you go. A great technique is to replace liquid in the recipe (either baking or frosting) with spice-infused water. Add tumeric powder to icing 1/4 tsp at a time and mix well
• Another way to achieve Red or Pink   For a treat, try an orange flavoured cake with a pomegranate glaze. Use the berries from the pomegranate, just mash them or blend them, then strain the liquid through mesh to remove the seeds. Yum!
• Purple  Instead of using beets here is an alternative method of creating Purple Try boiling red cabbage until you get a dark, concentrated broth. Lots of pretty purple color can be achieved without much change in flavour using the broth to replace other fluid.