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Here’s how to make colored sugar! This easy DIY project is perfect for decorating drinks, cookies, cupcakes, and more.
Want a fun trick for decorating drinks or baked goods? Try DIY colored sugar, an easy way to make it at home! All you need is sugar and food coloring: no need to run to the specialty baking aisle.
I discovered this trick to make a fun rim for a cocktail recipe, and I couldn’t believe how easy it was! Here’s what to do.
How to Make Colored Sugar
It’s simple to make colored sugar at home. The only tool you need is a glass canning jar with a lid. Here’s what to do:
- Shake ¼ cup sugar with 1 to 3 drops of food coloring: In a glass canning jar with a top, place the granulated sugar and food coloring. Use 1 drop for light colors and 3 drops for bright colors. Shake the ingredients vigorously for about 30 seconds until the color is fully distributed.
- Allow to dry: Pour the sugar onto a foil-lined baking sheet. Remove any clumps of food coloring with a spoon. Allow to dry for 20 minutes.
- Break up clumps and store: Break up any clumps with your fingers, or shake the sugar in the jar again to remove them. Use immediately or store in a sealed container.
Tips for Success
This colored sugar comes together quickly and is perfect for a festive margarita! There are a few notes to keep in mind as you whip up your sugar:
- Darker colors may need more drops of food coloring. This black sugar required 8 to 10 drops of food coloring to get a saturated color. It also required more time to dry (allow at least 30 minutes for darker colors).
- Shake vigorously. Sometimes bits of food coloring can clump with the granules; this is ok! Shake as well as you can, then you can remove any clumps you see before drying with a spoon.
- Remove clumps after drying. As you see from the photos above, some natural clumps form as the sugar dries. These are easy to remove after drying. Simply use your fingers to smash the clumps, or place them back in the jar and shake to revive the texture.
Ways to Use It
There are so many ways to use this DIY colored sugar! I love using it for cocktails, but the possibilities are endless. Here are a few ideas for how to use it:
- Cocktail drink rims for fall cocktails, Halloween cocktails, or Christmas cocktails
- Cookies like sugar cookies or iced applesauce cookies
- Cupcakes like carrot cake cupcakes
- Cakes like vanilla mug cake, chocolate mug cake, or pumpkin cake
How do you plan to use it? Let me know in the comments below.
Dietary Notes
This recipe is vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free, and gluten-free.
Colored Sugar
Here’s how to make colored sugar! This easy DIY project is perfect for decorating drinks, cookies, cupcakes, and more.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Rest Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: ¼ cup 1x
- Category: Essential
- Method: No Cook
- Cuisine: Sugar
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 to 3* drops food coloring
Instructions
- In a glass canning jar with a top, place the granulated sugar and food coloring. Use 1 drop for light colors and 3 drops for bright colors. Note that some colors may need additional food coloring (black needs about 8 to 10 drops).
- Shake the ingredients for about 30 seconds until the color is fully distributed. Add any additional drops of food coloring as needed; make sure to shake well to avoid clumps.
- Pour the sugar onto a foil-lined baking sheet. Remove any clumps of food coloring with a spoon. Allow to dry for 20 minutes (or about 30 minutes for black).
- Break up any clumps with your fingers, or shake the sugar again in the jar to remove the clumps. Use immediately or store in a sealed container.
Love making my own colored sugar. The blues, yellows, greens and reds come out great, but I am having a hard time getting a vivid purple, lilac or raspberry pink, the color is coming out muddied and dull. Any suggestions? I tried mixing different ratios of blue and red food coloring, but nothing is coming out brightly hued, just dull.
Let us know if you have any questions!
I am trying this tonight! I am hoping to try it with salt too, to have both options for our cocktail selection :)