Easter Eggs Colored with Onion Peel and Red Cabbage
Onion Peel Colored Eggs
Read my Notes in the Old Family Recipes Section of this Blog.
INGREDIENTS:
= Onion peel from 2-3 kg (about 6 lbs.) yellow onions – the more you have of the onion peel the better
= 2½ - 3 l (about 12 cups) water
= 2 dozen of white uncooked eggs
= Some Parsley and Cilantro leaves
= Elastic stockings (old) or cheesecloth
= Olive or any vegetable oil for oiling the colored eggs (optional)
COOKING:
1. Take the eggs out of the fridge, wash them under the running water, dry and leave them at the room temperature to warm up – for about 2 hours. It will prevent them from cracking during cooking.
2. If necessary, wash the onion peel under the running water. Put the peel in a wide but not tall pan, cover with hot water and boil over medium heat for 15-20 minutes. Turn the heat off and let the peel to cool in the pan.
3. Put the clean and dry eggs into the cooled onion peel, covering the eggs well with the peel. To save my hands from coloring I wear culinary gloves.
Bring the eggs to boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 15-20 minutes, if you want a deep brown-red color.
4. When eggs are done, take them out of the pan with a slotted spoon one by one and cool each of them under cold water – it will make them peel easier. Leave the eggs to dry.
5. When the eggs are dry, shiny them with vegetable oil (optional).
Coloring Eggs with Herbal Design
Read my Notes in the Old Family Recipes Section of this Blog.
COLORED EGGS with HERBAL DESIGN:
Dip a clean white egg into water and place a Parsley or Cilantro leaf on the egg. Glue it to the egg with water and pull the stocking onto the egg tightly – to fix the leaf. Tie the stocking in a tight knot and cut the rest of it. Repeat with as many eggs as you want to have with herbal design.
Put the “stockinged” eggs into the warm onion peel and boil together with other eggs. Remove the stoking and the leaves from the eggs when done.
Onion peel is not the only natural coloring for the Easter eggs. I also like using red cabbage that gives my Easter eggs deep blue or delicate blue color depending on the length of coloring.
INGREDIENTS:
= 1 head of red cabbage – sliced
= ½ cup of 5% vinegar
= Water
Coloring Eggs with Red Cabbage Stock
Read my Notes in the Old Family Recipes Section of this Blog.
COOKING:
1. Slice the head of red cabbage, put it in a pot, add vinegar, and cover with water. Bring the water to boil then reduce to low and cook covered for about 2 hours.
2. Strain the cabbage: keep the stock, discard the cabbage. Let the cabbage stock cool completely.
3. While the cabbage is cooking, hard-boil several clean white eggs. Cool them completely.
4. Place the cooked white eggs into the cooled cabbage stock. Keep the eggs in the stock from 3 to 12 hours depending on how dark you want their color to be. I prefer a deep blue color and keep the eggs in the cabbage stock overnight.
5. Take the colored eggs out of stock and shine them with vegetable oil.
If you’d like to make blue color eggs with herbal design, you need to take the hard-boiled white eggs, dip them into water and place a Parsley or Cilantro leaf on each egg. Glue it to the egg with water and pull the stocking onto the egg tightly – to fix the leaf. Tie the stocking in a tight knot and cut the rest of it. Repeat with as many eggs as you want to have with herbal design. Place the “stockinged” eggs into the cabbage stock and keep it there overnight.
