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Homemade Colored Frosting (Gluten Free, Vegan, Paleo, Refined Sugar Free)


Ingredients

Scale

Purple Dye

  • 1 cup frozen blackberries

Red Dye

  • 1 small beet, peeled and roughly chopped

Green Dye

  • 1 tsp matcha green tea powder (I used this one)

Yellow Dye

  • 1/2 tsp ground turmeric powder

Cashew Frosting

  • 2 cups raw cashews
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup honey, coconut sugar or maple syrup

Buttercream Frosting

  • 1/2 cup room temperature unsalted butter, preferably pastured
  • 2 cups confectioners sugar (I make my own by whizzing up 1.5 cups coconut sugar with 1 tbsp corn starch or arrowroot in my blender until powdery)
  • 1.5 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tsp milk of choice (omit if using a liquid color – for example, the red or purple)

Instructions

Purple Dye

  1. In a medium saucepan, heat blackberries over medium-low, stirring occasionally and mushing the blackberries as they become liquid. After they’re completely liquid and broken up, remove from heat and strain through a fine mesh strainer. Add remaining dye to frosting of choice 1 tsp at a time until satisfied with color.

Red Dye

  1. Fill a small saucepan up with 1 – 2″ water. Add chopped beet and bring to boil, then reduce heat to simmer and simmer for about 20 minutes, or until beet looks wan and paler in color and the liquid has reduced to a few tablespoons (make sure you stop before there’s no liquid, and the beets just stick to the pan). Strain to remove beats, then add remaining dye to frosting of choice 1 tsp at a time until satisfied with color.

Green Dye

  1. Stir into frosting.

Yellow Dye

  1. Stir into frosting.

Cashew Frosting

  1. Submerged the raw cashews completely in water, and soak for 1 – 2 hours. Drain very well, then add to a food processor with all remaining ingredients. Process for 3 – 4 minutes – you don’t simply want the ingredients to combine, but you want the nuts to release their oils and for the texture to get very creamy. Mix in colors of choice before spreading on cookies or using a piping bag or sandwich bag to decorate.

Buttercream Frosting

  1. Using a hand mixer or the paddle attachment on a stand mixer, cream butter until it’s light and fluffy. Add the sugar a little at a time, then mix in the vanilla. If you’re using a liquid coloring (the blue or purple) add in lieu of milk; if you’re using a powder, beat in the milk and then add turmeric or matcha.