So, I got tired of those little bottles of green food coloring. You know the ones. They stain everything and honestly, who knows what’s really in them? Decided I’d try making my own, something all natural. Figured it couldn’t be that hard.
Trying Spinach First
I started with spinach because, well, I had a bag in the fridge. Seemed like the most obvious green thing around.
- First, I grabbed a big handful of the fresh stuff. Probably about two cups, loosely packed.
- Washed it real good. Didn’t want any dirt in my coloring.
- Tossed it straight into my blender. Some folks say blanch it first, but I wanted to see if raw worked. Less fuss.
- Added just a tiny splash of water, maybe a tablespoon or two, just to help it blend.
- Then I just whizzed it up. Made a heck of a racket, but it turned into this bright green puree pretty quick.
- Okay, puree isn’t coloring. I needed the juice. Poured the whole mess into a fine mesh sieve over a bowl.
- Pushed down on the pulp with a spoon. Got some liquid out, but it was slow going.
- Then I remembered I had some cheesecloth somewhere. Found it, dumped the spinach mush in there, and squeezed. Really squeezed. That worked way better.
Got maybe a quarter cup of this deep green liquid. Looked pretty potent. Sniffed it – yep, smelled like spinach. Not terrible, but definitely spinach-y.
Quick Go with Matcha
Just for kicks, and because the spinach thing felt like a bit of work, I tried matcha powder too. Had some in the cupboard for ages.
This was ridiculously easy. Took about a teaspoon of the matcha powder, added maybe two teaspoons of water, and just stirred it into a paste. Bam. Green coloring.
The color was different, though. More of a grassy, slightly muted green compared to the vibrant spinach juice. And it definitely smells like matcha green tea.
So, How’d They Work?
I needed to test them, right? Whipped up a small batch of simple white frosting.
Stirred a little of the spinach juice into one bit. It turned a nice, light green. Added more, got it darker. But yeah, you could taste the spinach faintly if you really focused. Probably wouldn’t notice it much in something with stronger flavors, though.
Tried the matcha paste in another bit. Also turned green, maybe a slightly dustier shade? The matcha flavor was definitely there. Good if you want that flavor, not so good if you don’t.
Overall? The spinach method gave a cleaner green color, I think, but it was more work and had that slight veggie taste. The matcha was super easy, but the color wasn’t as bright and the flavor is pretty specific.
Honestly, making it myself felt kinda good. Knowing exactly what went into it. Might try that spirulina stuff people talk about next, see how that goes. For now, the spinach juice works okay if I need a natural green, just gotta remember that subtle taste.
