TOP: purple w/ almond or anise, yellow w/ lemon or banana, MIDDLE: pink w/ strawberry or watermelon, BOTTOM: orange w/ orange, and green w/ mint
Colored sugars with flavoring, why not? If you have or had children, then you know that spring is the season for buying food coloring to dye those Easter eggs. Once you dye those eggs, what do you do with that extra food coloring? Why not use those colors to make colored sanding sugar with custom flavorings? Colored sanding sugar adds color, sparkle, crunch, and additional flavoring to your cake or cupcake frosting like in my homemade Mardi Gras Marbled King Cake. Why not sprinkle it on toast with butter for a fun sweet breakfast treat or afternoon snack?
Purpose of this Post: What’s Included…
This blog post explains and demonstrates how to color and flavor granulated sugar using the 4 standard colors that come in a typical liquid food dye package. In addition, there are optional corresponding flavors using different flavoring extracts. Each recipe makes ¼ cup of colored sugar that can be modified based on your needs; you can add more sugar, coloring, or flavoring to any recipe. Not only that, but how about recipes for another 12 color and flavoring options? See the recipe below for those options. You may never need to buy commercial colored sanding sugar again. 😉
5 Colored Sugars & Flavors Explained & Demonstrated:
- 1: Yellow Sanding Sugar with Optional Lemon or Banana Flavoring
- 2: Green Sanding Sugar with Optional Peppermint or Mint Flavoring
- 3: Orange Sanding Sugar with Optional Orange Flavoring
- 4: Purple Sanding Sugar with Optional Almond, Vanilla, or Anise (Licorice) Flavoring
- 5: Pink Sanding Sugar with Optional Strawberry / Watermelon Flavoring
How Much Flavor are We Talking?
The flavorings in these recipes are more nuanced rather than strong candy flavorings. They are meant to enhance the same flavorings already in the frosting or cake that they decorate. They are not meant to be eaten like candy. You can always add more extract to the sugar if you want a stronger flavor. If you only want the color, simply forgo the flavorings.
Colored Sugars with Flavorings: Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you’ll need for 5 different spring colors and flavors. You’ll need granulated sugar. Cane sugar tends to have larger crystals like sanding sugar and is best for coloring and flavoring. In addition, you’ll need a package of the four standard liquid food dye colors- red, yellow, green, and blue. For optional extract flavorings, I like to use lemon, orange, peppermint, and strawberry or strawberry/watermelon water flavoring. You can also add almond, banana, mint, vanilla, or anise (licorice) extracts.
Prepare Drying Pans
Depending on the number of colors and flavors you make, you’ll need enough space to spread out each separately. If you’re only making a small amount (one recipe) of one color, you may only need a plate and a small sheet of wax paper. Since I made 5 colors and flavors for this post, I have 5 areas on 2 baking pans and 5 sheets of wax paper on which to lay out each color. On one baking sheet, I have 3 sheets of wax paper, larger than I need but large enough to pull up the edges to use as a barrier in between each color. You’ll see that I also did the same on another small baking pan with 2 sheets of wax paper.
1: Yellow Sanding Sugar with Lemon or Banana Flavoring
Start with a quart size plastic ziptop bag or glass jar with a screw top lid. To that, add 50 grams (¼ cup) granulated cane sugar.
TIP: I would not use a plastic container as the food dye will stain it.
Add Yellow Color & Lemon or Banana Flavoring
Add 3 drops of yellow food coloring. Then, add ⅛-½ teaspoon of lemon (or banana) extract. You can start with ⅛ teaspoon, let the sugar dry, and if you want more flavoring add another ⅛ teaspoon. I find an ⅛ teaspoon is not enough, so I start with ¼ teaspoon of extract. If you want a stronger lemon or banana flavor, add ½ tsp in total of extract.
TIPS: Keep a paper towel nearby to wipe up random drops of food dye. Pour the extract in the appropriate measuring spoon over a larger measuring spoon. If too much liquid is accidentally poured, it will fall into the bottom spoon. If so, you can easily pour the extra back into the extract bottle.
Seal Container, Shake, & Dry
Seal the bag or screw on the jar lid and shake vigorously until the color has dispersed evenly throughout the sugar and no wet spots remain. Add more food coloring if you want a darker yellow.
TIPS: If using a bag, zip the top with air left inside to create a bubble allowing space for the sugar to move. If there are any clumps of wet spots that won’t disperse, use your hands to break them up through the bag or use a spatula or spoon to break them up in the jar. Then, seal again and shake to disperse.
Open the bag or jar and pour the sugar onto a sheet of wax paper on the baking sheet. It will take a few hours to overnight for the sugar to dry. Leave it uncovered and at room temperature.
TIPS: Placing the sugar on wax paper makes it easy to lift and pour into a bag or jar for storage. Placing the wax paper on a large plate or baking pan makes it easy to move around the kitchen as needed for space.
2: Green Sanding Sugar with Mint Flavoring
Start with a quart size plastic ziptop bag or glass jar with a screw top lid. To that, add 50 grams (¼ cup) granulated cane sugar.
TIP: I would not use a plastic container as the food dye will stain it.
Add Green Color & Mint Flavoring
For a mint green color, add 3 drops of green food coloring. Add ⅛-½ tsp peppermint or mint extract. You can start with ⅛ teaspoon, let the sugar dry and if you want more flavoring add another ⅛ tsp. I find an ⅛ teaspoon is not enough, so I start with ¼ teaspoon. If you want a stronger mint flavor, add ½ tsp in total of extract.
TIPS: Keep a paper towel nearby to wipe up random drops of food dye. Pour the extract in the appropriate measuring spoon over a larger measuring spoon. If too much liquid is accidentally poured, it will fall into the bottom spoon. If so, you can easily pour the extra back into the extract bottle.
Seal Container, Shake, & Dry
Seal the bag or screw on the jar lid and shake vigorously until the color has dispersed evenly throughout the sugar and no wet spots remain. Add more food coloring if you want a darker green.
TIPS: If using a bag, zip the top with air left inside to create a bubble allowing space for the sugar to move. If there are any clumps of wet spots that won’t disperse, use your hands to break them up through the bag or use a spatula or spoon to break them up in the jar. Then, seal again and shake to disperse.
Open the bag or jar and pour the sugar onto a sheet of wax paper on the baking sheet. It will take a few hours to overnight for the sugar to dry. Leave it uncovered and at room temperature.
TIPS: Placing the sugar on wax paper makes it easy to lift and pour into a bag or jar for storage. Placing the wax paper on a large plate or baking pan makes it easy to move around the kitchen as needed for space.
3: Orange Sanding Sugar with Orange Flavoring
Start with a quart size plastic ziptop bag or glass jar with a screw top lid. To that, add 50 grams (¼ cup) granulated cane sugar.
TIP: I would not use a plastic container as the food dye will stain it.
Add Orange Color & Orange Flavoring
While there are different combinations of colors to reach orange, I prefer a bright orange color. To reach a bright orange, add 3 drops of red food coloring and 2 drops of yellow food coloring. Add ¼ tsp orange extract; I find less than that is not enough. If you want a stronger orange flavor, add ½ tsp in total of extract.
TIPS: Keep a paper towel nearby to wipe up random drops of food dye. Pour the extract in the appropriate measuring spoon over a larger measuring spoon. If too much liquid is accidentally poured, it will fall into the bottom spoon. If so, you can easily pour the extra back into the extract bottle.
Seal Container, Shake, & Dry
Seal the bag or screw on the jar lid and shake vigorously until the color has dispersed evenly throughout the sugar and no wet spots remain.
TIPS: If using a bag, zip the top with air left inside to create a bubble allowing space for the sugar to move. If there are any clumps of wet spots that won’t disperse, use your hands to break them up through the bag or use a spatula or spoon to break them up in the jar. Then, seal again and shake to disperse.
Open the bag or jar and pour the sugar onto a sheet of wax paper on the baking sheet. It will take a few hours to overnight for the sugar to dry. Leave it uncovered and at room temperature.
TIPS: Placing the sugar on wax paper makes it easy to lift and pour into a bag or jar for storage. Placing the wax paper on a large plate or baking pan makes it easy to move around the kitchen as needed for space.
4: Purple Sanding Sugar with Almond, Vanilla, or Anise (Licorice) Flavoring
Start with a quart size plastic ziptop bag or glass jar with a screw top lid. To that, add 50 grams (¼ cup) granulated cane sugar.
TIP: I would not use a plastic container as the food dye will stain it.
Add Purple Color & Desired Flavoring
For a simple purple color, add 3 drops red food coloring and 2 drops blue food coloring. Then, add ¼ teaspoon of almond, vanilla, or anise (licorice) extract. I find almond and vanilla are not very strong flavors, so you may prefer to add ½ tsp in total (or more, maybe) of extract.
TIPS: Keep a paper towel nearby to wipe up random drops of food dye. Pour the extract in the appropriate measuring spoon over a larger measuring spoon. If too much liquid is accidentally poured, it will fall into the bottom spoon. If so, you can easily pour the extra back into the extract bottle.
Seal Container, Shake, & Dry
Seal the bag or screw on the jar lid and shake vigorously until the color has dispersed evenly throughout the sugar and no wet spots remain.
TIPS: If using a bag, zip the top with air left inside to create a bubble allowing space for the sugar to move. If there are any clumps of wet spots that won’t disperse, use your hands to break them up through the bag or use a spatula or spoon to break them up in the jar. Then, seal again and shake to disperse.
Open the bag or jar and pour the sugar onto a sheet of wax paper on the baking sheet. It will take a few hours to overnight for the sugar to dry. Leave it uncovered and at room temperature.
TIPS: Placing the sugar on wax paper makes it easy to lift and pour into a bag or jar for storage. Placing the wax paper on a large plate or baking pan makes it easy to move around the kitchen as needed for space.
5: Pink Sanding Sugar with Strawberry-Watermelon Flavoring
Start with a quart size plastic ziptop bag or glass jar with a screw top lid. To that, add 50 grams (¼ cup) granulated cane sugar.
TIP: I would not use a plastic container as the food dye will stain it.
Add Pink Color & Strawberry Flavoring
While there are different color combinations to reach pink, I prefer the red and blue combination. Add 3 drops of red coloring and 1 drop of blue food coloring. Then, if you have strawberry extract, use that. If not, you can actually use those concentrated liquid water flavorings to achieve flavoring. I bought a MIO strawberry-watermelon liquid water flavoring to test, and it surprisingly works. Whether you use strawberry extract or a liquid water flavoring, add ¼ teaspoon to the sugar. If you want stronger flavors, add ½ tsp in total of extract.
TIPS: Keep a paper towel nearby to wipe up random drops of food dye. Pour the extract in the appropriate measuring spoon over a larger measuring spoon. If too much liquid is accidentally poured, it will fall into the bottom spoon. If so, you can easily pour the extra back into the extract bottle.
Seal Container, Shake, & Dry
Seal the bag or screw on the jar lid and shake vigorously until the color has dispersed evenly throughout the sugar and no wet spots remain.
TIPS: If using a bag, zip the top with air left inside to create a bubble allowing space for the sugar to move. If there are any clumps of wet spots that won’t disperse, use your hands to break them up through the bag or use a spatula or spoon to break them up in the jar. Then, seal again and shake to disperse.
Open the bag or jar and pour the sugar onto a sheet of wax paper on the baking sheet. It will take a few hours to overnight for the sugar to dry. Leave it uncovered and at room temperature.
TIPS: Placing the sugar on wax paper makes it easy to lift and pour into a bag or jar for storage. Placing the wax paper on a large plate or baking pan makes it easy to move around the kitchen as needed for space.
Tips for All Colored Sugars & Flavorings
Regardless of the color or flavor, be sure to keep each separate. Allow each color to dry uncovered for a couple of hours to overnight. After the sugar dries, taste it. If you want more flavoring, simply return the sugar to the bag or jar and add another ⅛ – ¼ tsp of flavoring, shake and pour out onto the wax paper to dry again. You can repeat this step until you reach your desired flavoring. The sugars with more moisture added may clump after drying, simply use your fingers to break up the clumps.
Storing Suggestion for Colored Sugars
Once dry, you can use the sugars in whatever capacity you desire. For longer storage, place them in separate sealed containers or bags and store at room temperature until needed. They will keep for months in the pantry.
Suggestions on Using Colored Sugar
- Breakfast: sprinkle some over your oatmeal, waffles, pancakes, buttered toast, or over the frosting of a pan of cinnamon rolls.
- Dessert or snack: sprinkle some over a bowl of ice cream (or whipped topping), frosted sugar cookies, frosted cakes, and frosted cupcakes prior to drying.
- Beverages: use it as the main sugar in your single serving of hot chocolate or coffee or sprinkle it over some whipped cream topped hot chocolate or coffee. Use it to sweeten lemonade, iced tea, or hot tea.
Colored Sugars: Final Thoughts
TOP: purple w/ almond or anise, yellow w/ lemon or banana, MIDDLE: pink w/ strawberry or watermelon, BOTTOM: orange w/ orange, and green w/ mint
Making colored sugars is simple and super easy. While you can buy many other food dye colors, this post focuses on using those 4 colors that many of us already have. If you have other colors, play with them following the directions provided along with other extracts. With a few pantry items, you can make quite a few colors and flavors. Some of the extracts (mint, orange, and strawberry) are stronger than others while a few (lemon, almond, and vanilla) are hardly detectable, so I would start with ¼ tsp and add another ¼ tsp, as needed. Use these sugars in any way you want to reach that crunch, color, or flavor factor. Have fun creating sweet and flavorful toppings for your next breakfast, dessert, snack, or beverage. Making your own colored sanding sugar is so much cheaper than buying them commercially and you can be creative with the flavors.
Check out my YouTube video on the details of making these colored sugars and flavors entitled “5 Simple Colored Sanding Sugars with Custom Flavors: Cheaper than Commercial with Many Other Options.”
5 Simple Colored Sugars with Custom Flavors
Ingredients
Yellow Sugar with Optional Lemon or Banana Flavoring:
- 1 plastic ziptop quart size bag or glass jar with screw-top lid
- 50 g (¼ cup) granulated cane sugar larger granules are best
- 3 drops liquid yellow food coloring
- ⅛-½ tsp lemon or banana extracts optional
Green Sugar with Optional Peppermint or Mint Flavoring:
- 1 plastic ziptop quart size bag or glass jar with screw-top lid
- 50 g (¼ cup) granulated cane sugar larger granules are best
- 3 drops liquid green food coloring
- ⅛-½ tsp peppermint or mint extract optional
Orange Sanding Sugar with Optional Orange Flavoring:
- 1 plastic ziptop quart size bag or glass jar with screw-top lid
- 50 g (¼ cup) granulated cane sugar larger granules are best
- 3 drops liquid red food coloring
- 2 drops liquid yellow food coloring
- ⅛-½ tsp orange extract optional
Purple Sanding Sugar with Optional Almond, Vanilla, or Anise (Licorice) Flavoring:
- 1 plastic ziptop quart size bag or glass jar with screw-top lid
- 50 g (¼ cup) granulated cane sugar larger granules are best
- 3 drops liquid red food coloring
- 2 drops liquid blue food coloring
- ⅛-½ tsp almond, vanilla, or anise (licorice) extract (optional)
Pink Sanding Sugar with Optional Strawberry-Watermelon Flavoring:
- 1 plastic ziptop quart size bag or glass jar with screw-top lid
- 50 g (¼ cup) granulated cane sugar larger granules are best
- 3 drops liquid red food coloring
- 1 drop liquid blue food coloring
- ⅛-½ tsp strawberry extract or MIO strawberry/watermelon liquid water flavoring optional
Instructions
- For each color above, add sugar to the ziptop bag or small glass container. Add appropriate amounts of food coloring and optional extracts. Zip bag (with air left to create a bubble for the sugar to move) or seal container. Shake until the color is dispersed and evenly coats the sugar granules.TIP 1: Add more food coloring to reach desired color. TIP 2: You may start with ⅛ tsp of extracts, but the flavors are very nuanced or hardly detected for some of them. I prefer to use a ¼ tsp and add another ¼ as desired.TIP 3: To accurately measure extracts and prevent waste, very carefully pour desired amount in an ⅛ to ¼ tsp over a larger spoon. Return excess extract that may have fallen in the larger spoon back into the original extract bottle.TIP 4: If clumps of wet remain, break them up using your hands to squeeze the bag or a spatula in the jar.
- Pour each sugar out of bag or container onto a sheet of wax paper on a baking sheet and spread it out using a spatula. Keep multiple colors and flavors separate using the edge of the wax paper as a barrier in between each. Allow each color to dry uncovered for a couple of hours to overnight at room temperature. Use sugar as desired.TIP: Once dry, taste the sugar. If more flavoring or color is desired, return the sugar to the bag or container and repeat by adding more color or extract. Then, pour out onto wax paper again allowing time to dry.
Video
Notes
Once dry, you can use the sugars in whatever capacity you desire. For longer storage, place them in separate sealed containers or bags and store at room temperature until needed. They will keep for months in the pantry. Suggestions on Using Colored Sugar:
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- Breakfast: sprinkle some over your oatmeal, waffles, pancakes, buttered toast, or over the frosting of a pan of cinnamon rolls.
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- Dessert or snack: sprinkle some over a bowl of ice cream (or whipped topping), frosted sugar cookies, frosted cakes, and frosted cupcakes prior to drying.
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- Beverages: use it as the main sugar in your single serving of hot chocolate or coffee or sprinkle it over some whipped cream topped hot chocolate or coffee. Use it to sweeten lemonade, iced tea, or hot tea.
You might be interested in these other recipes that use food coloring.
5-Minute Chocolate Covered Cherry Mini Cake
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