Green is the official color for St. Patrick’s Day.

Stores pack their shelves with green hats, glasses, beads, cups, and t-shirts. Bars serve up mugs of green beer and other green-hued cocktails. Grocery stores serve up green frosted cookies, cakes, and cupcakes with impossibly cute green sprinkles on top.

Green, green, everywhere you look. Generally speaking, these food and drinks get their colors from artificial food colors.

I am not a fan of artificial food colors.

These toxic chemicals masquerading as food are possible through the wonder of chemistry and the industry of oil drilling. Studies have shown various adverse health effects from ingesting them. And, did you know that artificial food colors undergo animal testing to ensure their safety as a food additive?

It’s true.

Relatedly, animal testing sucks and can yield dangerous results when physicians treat patients using medicine based on the results of these studies.

Every time a holiday approaches, the artificial colors go on sale. Magazines, blogs, and videos feature impossibly cute and creative treats made with a variety of unnatural colors achieved through the magic of artificial colors.

There’s a better way; make bright, vivid colors at home.

Look at those colors! Yellow, red, purple, green, and even blue. Easy to make, these colors come from everyday ingredients found in your fridge or pantry. Trust me, it’s not complicated or expensive.

Click here for the full step-by-step homemade food coloring tutorial.

Here are a few dyes that are colored with vegetable juice or spices, and contain no synthetic dyes.

Color Kitchen Food Colors from Nature

This brand started popping up at my local markets, so I picked up a few packets to test out on my favorite sugar cookies. I’m a fan.

First, the colors come packaged in individual packets, which means I don’t over-buy. Second, the colors mix easily and create beautifully, even colors. I don’t even mind that they’re more pastel than bright. Lastly, they’re budget-friendly. Here’s a 10-pack, Color Kitchen Food Colors from Nature, that makes a perfect starter pack.

McCormick Nature’s Inspiration Food Colors

By far, these colors from McCormick are the cheapest and the most widely available in mainstream grocery stores everywhere. These plant-based powdered colors come in a pack of three colors (Sky Blue, Berry & Sunflower), which you can mix for an infinite amount of color options. And I know this is a small thing, but I really like how they’re packaged in resealable dry powder pouches. That makes for easy storage, and more importantly, easy re-use.

I bought this McCormick Nature’s Inspiration Food Colors pack for these unicorn sugar cookies, and I love how vivid the colors turned out. I would absolutely buy these again.

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