I cringe every year when I see the red colored cakes and cupcakes shared on Pinterest. Artificial colors add no nutrition and studies show they’re harmful. That doesn’t mean a dye-free holiday has to mean a blah Valentine’s Day. You can use natural food coloring available online and in stores like Whole Foods. Or use colorful paper, packaging, and toppers instead of nasty food coloring.
Here are my picks of the best dye-free Valentine’s Day goodies I could find on the web. Click on any of the photos to be taken directly to the creator’s website and the recipe and/or instructions. I’ve included Martha Stewart‘s brilliant DIY crafting wax paper tutorial because it turns any baked good into a Valentine’s Day Treat.
See! Your holiday can be cute, fun, and colorful without the harmful synthetic dyes found in most kitchen cupboards. So next time you think about adding red dye to something, remember there are better ways and try beets or natural food coloring instead!
Connie,
good post here. from what I understand, a lot of the dyes are VERY bad for us all. I personally have had trouble with maraschino cherries because of the chemicals. beet juice is a great idea!
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Chad
Chad,
There are Maraschino cherries WITHOUT dye – I wrote a post about them and they’re FABULOUS! I buy them online.
Thanks!
Connie
You certainly shouldn’t be eating the color, it’s nice to look at but I prefer my health over anything else.
Thanks for info on the dyes, I didn’t know they were that harmful. These recipes look great. I enjoy baking and thanks for sharing the recipes.
Dangerous especially in children.
Thanks so much for all the information on these recipes. We try to live healthier and watch what is in the things we eat that is harmful to us. I appeciate anything I can read up on .
goodies sound yummy!!
The Be My Valentine Heart Shaped Black and White Cookies by Land O Lakes would be perfect for my grandson! He would love them!
I know, I cringe too! I know they’re still using the red dyes that I thought the FDA banned. I’ve experimented with beet juice and I’m semi-pleased with the results. Also, the cover picture for the Chocolate Desserts for Two by Paula Deen is making my mouth water!
I’m all about beautiful color in the plates and paper products, but I leave it off my food whenever possible.
All of these recipes sounds delicious!
Thanks for letting me know about these food colorings I had no idea….Love the ideas
Those Molten Chocolate cakes look just delish!
Thank you for sharing! It is hard to get away from artificial dyes especially for something like Valentine’s Day. These are great ideas and look delicious. I can’t decide which to try first, although those Chocolate Raspberry Hearts might be calling my name…
I keep hoping that people will learn how dangerous those hyper-colored desserts are, especially in developing children. We subject their poor little bodies to so much.
WOW! These look delicious! I don’t know which to make first!
ilike your mold you hve there they could use for the melt to make and i got to look for some of them to use for the melt
I never have given much thought about dyes, but will now think twice. Love all of these especially the Molten Chocolate Cakes with Raspberries Recipe
Thank you for this informative post filled with great recipes. I have even stopped eating my beloved Twizzlers because of the red dyes. I am definitely going to try some of these recipes!!
I didn’t know artificial dyes were harmful! I really like the Chocolate Chip-Almond-Cherry Cups Recipe by Pillsbury! It looks delicious! Thanks for the recipes!
The Be My Valentine Heart Shaped Black and White Cookies by Land O Lakes look delicious!
I, too, worry about too much food coloring.
Drool! The mini whoopie pies look wonderful! Thank you for some great ideas!
I love the peanut butter cookies with the chocolate hearts. What a great idea! These are one of my families favorite cookies. Now I have a new spin on it. You always have the best recipes. Thanks!
I swear I was just thinking about this! I haven’t even thought of natural food coloring before. I’ll have to look for some of that. Or maybe I’ll just experiment with raspberries and cranberries this year 🙂