For past Easters, I have been organized enough to buy at least a dozen white eggs from the store for dying, thinking the colorful dyes would show up best on a white backdrop. This year, what with broken-down cars, high fevers, scorpion stings and second-degree burns, it’s all been a little more “on the fly,” shall we say.
I thought this coud pose a problem in a few ways. One, the eggs we normally buy — from a neighbor — are so fresh, that they’re not ideal for hard-boiling. I didn’t actually know this until the last few years, but it turns out that eggs that are a little older are the best for hard-boiling, because the shells separate from the egg more easily. Then, the eggs we normally buy are various shades of brown and blue, rather than the white I once thought were ideal. We also decided to forego the store-bought dye kits (with stickers) that we’ve used in past Easters, and that I remember from my suburban childhood. So, we were in a bit of uncharted territory.
We started out with the brown and blue eggs, used paste food coloring (with vinegar) originally purchased for cake decorating, and they turned out really lovely. I think they’re more natural-looking than the pastels we normally see, and a freckled egg we dyed green turned out especially beautifully, I think.
Hope you’ve enjoyed your own Easter egg dying, if you celebrate, and that you’re having a lovely holiday!
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