Flying on Jess Fuel

Fueling my Navy pilot, one meal at a time...

Navigation
  • Home
  • A little about us…
    • Privacy Policy
  • Recipes
  • Travel
  • Gardening

All-Natural Valentine’s Day Cupcakes (with no artificial food coloring)

February 2, 2015 by jessfuel 15 Comments

All Natural Valentine's Day Cupcakes with no artificial food coloring

Good morning and Happy Monday!! I hope all the Patriots fans out there are having a super day… I am. What a great game, huh? Everyone I watched the game with was rooting for the Seahawks (except one friend who was pity-rooting for the Pats for my benefit, haha), so that just made the victory even sweeter. I’ve seen some pretty awesome memes popping up on Facebook this morning, but I think my favorite: They hate us ‘cuz they ain’t us! GO PATS!

Anyways, speaking of sweet… I made you some Valentine’s Day cupcakes. They’ve got a little secret ingredient in them to make them all pretty in pink, and it’s not red dye #40. I’ll give you a hint: it came from my garden…

Garden Beets

BEETS?! If you’ve ever prepared beets at home, I’m sure you’ve been a victim of stained countertops and pink fingers. Super duper healthy phytonutrients called betalains give beets their red hue. With such a powerful and good-for-you all-natural dye, why on earth do we put chemicals into our festive baked goods? Beet juice works just as well! And beet juice is such a concentrated coloring agent that you really don’t need to use much… meaning that it won’t affect the flavor of whatever you’re dyeing (unlike something like raspberry juice).

I won’t say I never eat artificial food colorings, because if I’m offered a cookie or cupcake or candy, I rarely turn it down, regardless of its rainbow hue. But I do like to eat as healthy as possible when I cook for myself, and when I’m baking at home, beet juice is just as easy peasy to use as red food coloring.

All Natural Valentine's Day Cupcakes

So how do you get beet juice out of a beet?

Well, the easiest way, of course, is to juice the beets! Since I own a juicer, so that’s a no brainer for me. If you aren’t lucky enough to own a juicer, there are a couple things you can do. You could shred the beets (a food processor would be the least-messy method), place them in a cheesecloth or dish towel (dark colored or one you don’t care about) and wring out the juice. You could also simmer chopped beets in a very small amount of water (just barely covering the beets) until they are tender, then use the cooking liquid, which will now be bright red. If you just don’t feel like doing the work… lucky for you, juicing is all the rage these days so you can find already-pressed beet juice at Whole Foods or other similar healthy grocery stores! (Or juice bars if you’re lucky enough to live in a real city!)

Now… once you’ve got your beet juice, how do you use it? Just like you would food coloring! You can add as much or as little as you’d like, depending on what shade of pink or red you’re going for. Do be warned: this method works great for frosting, icing, and no-bake treats. Baking is a little trickier, because the betalains can change to a more brown color when exposed to heat. So I’m not sure how well this would work in say, vanilla cupcakes. But I haven’t tried it! Has anyone out there?

Here’s the recipe I used for my frosting. And in case you’re curious, I used this recipe for the chocolate cupcakes and they were pretty darn delicious.

All-Natural Pink Vanilla Frosting (using beet juice)
 
Print
Author: Flying on Jess Fuel
Serves: 12 cupcakes worth
Ingredients
  • 1½ sticks butter, at room temperature
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tbsp milk
  • ½ to 1 tsp beet juice
Instructions
  1. Using an electric or stand mixer, beat butter until light and fluffy.
  2. Add the powdered sugar, one cup at a time, and beat until well incorporated.
  3. Add the vanilla extract and milk, and beat until combined.
  4. Add the beet juice and beet until the desired color is reached and frosting is light and fluffy. (You may need to scrape down the sides of the bowl.)
3.2.2885

All Natural Valentine's Day Cupcakes with no artificial food coloring (using beet juice)

For the record (and in case you’re still skeptical about putting a little veggie in your cupcakes), I served these to 6 kids and 5 adults and no one was the wiser. They were gobbled up without any questions or complaints! So seriously, you can’t taste the beets. Not even a little bit. So please, please do yourself a favor and stop putting chemicals in your food. Food can still be fun… you’ve just got to get a little creative. πŸ™‚ Happy Valentine’s Baking!

You Might Also Like:

Fall Recipe Roundup
American Flag 7-Layer Dip
Mini King Cakes for Mardi Gras!
Pumpkin Cheese Ball

Share this:

  • Share
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Print
  • Reddit

Filed Under: Desserts Tagged With: beets, cupcakes, holiday

« Coconut Flour Carrot Cake Donuts
Black Bean & Hominy Dip »

Comments

  1. Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice says

    February 2, 2015 at 11:57 am

    What a great idea to use beets in the frosting, Jess! I would’ve never thought of that, so creative! Love how fluffy and full of flavor this is!

    Reply
  2. Denise | Sweet Peas & Saffron says

    February 2, 2015 at 6:46 pm

    Ah how clever! I have totally been victim to beet juice stains and I swore never again…but I could make an exception for these cupcakes!

    Reply
    • jessfuel says

      February 3, 2015 at 5:23 pm

      HAHA! It can get a little messy… but when do we ever NOT make a mess in the kitchen! πŸ˜‰

      Reply
  3. Kristine @ Kristine's Kitchen says

    February 3, 2015 at 7:46 am

    I love that you tinted your frosting naturally with beet juice! I will use food coloring from time to time, but do like to avoid it when possible. Your cupcakes are so pretty!

    Reply
    • jessfuel says

      February 3, 2015 at 5:21 pm

      Thanks, Kristine!!

      Reply
  4. Annie @Maebells says

    February 3, 2015 at 9:08 am

    How fun! I love that this is a natural way to still get the red velvet look!

    Reply
  5. Natalie @ Tastes Lovely says

    February 3, 2015 at 10:13 am

    Ok, this is genius! What a great way to naturally color the frosting. Beets have such a strong pigment. I usually handle them with gloves on, otherwise my hands will look like I freshly murdered someone. Ha!

    Reply
    • jessfuel says

      February 3, 2015 at 5:21 pm

      LOL! That’s a good idea! I need to buy a box of rubber gloves!

      Reply
  6. [email protected] says

    February 3, 2015 at 1:40 pm

    Love that you used beet juice for this frosting! And it turned out such a pretty color. πŸ™‚

    Reply
  7. marcie says

    February 4, 2015 at 10:49 am

    Great idea using beet juice instead of food coloring! I really hate the idea of using food coloring, and break down and do it for red velvet a few times a year. The beet juice would be the best way and I need to try it some time!

    Reply
  8. Kelly @ Trial and Eater says

    February 4, 2015 at 7:21 pm

    I just had my first encounter with beets in my kitchen… now I know why they are so good as natural food dye! Love that you used them in these, I can’t believe it only takes 1 teaspoon!

    Reply
    • jessfuel says

      February 4, 2015 at 8:13 pm

      HAHA! Oh, yes, it’s some powerful stuff!!

      Reply
  9. Sarah @ Whole and Heavenly Oven says

    February 5, 2015 at 7:13 am

    I LOVE that there’s none of that scary food dye in these cupcakes, Jess! Beets are pretty much just my jam, so I’m all over these gorgeous ‘thangs!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Beet and Blue Cheese Tart | Flying on Jess Fuel says:
    February 8, 2015 at 2:20 pm

    […] I guess I’ve decided that beets are the official food of Valentine’s Day! First, I used beets in my pink cupcakes. And now, I’m turning them into hearts. How could I not, though, really? They are such a […]

    Reply
  2. Valentine’s Day Recipes {and Jess Fuel’s 4th Birthday!} | Flying on Jess Fuel says:
    February 10, 2015 at 10:36 am

    […] All Natural Valentine’s Day Cupcakes (No Artificial Food Coloring) […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Fueling my Navy Pilot, one meal at a time…

Welcome to Flying on Jess Fuel! I love to cook and share my recipes and adventures in the kitchen with everyone. Take a look around... you might just find tonight's dinner!

Search Flying on Jess Fuel

Subscribe via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to Flying on Jess Fuel and receive notifications of new posts by email.

ABOUT JESS

Jess is home cook, foodie and proud Navy wife. She grew up in Boston and now lives on the West Coast. She loves to blog, travel, read and write. When she's not working or blogging, she can be found running or relaxing with a glass of wine. Read More…

Check out these healthy recipes!

Dilly Cucumber Bites
Kale and Black Bean Enchiladas with Avocado Cream and Homemade Enchilada Sauce (Vegan)
Banana Almond Chia Seed Pudding

*Click Here* to read Flying on Jess Fuel’s Privacy Policy.
This site contains affiliate links, meaning that if you make a purchase through them, we will receive a small commission.

Copyright © 2023 · Foodie Child Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress