Onions and Easter Eggs: Natural Easter

Voila! Naturally dyed Easter Eggs.

Maxim Trevelyan
Writer, Ravenclaw

With April comes Easter to those who celebrate it. Even if you do not, some partake in coloring Easter eggs as a fun family activity. When my family partook in this tradition, we mostly chose fancy dyes, where you combine colorful powder, some vinegar and a dash of water. But there was always a carton of eggs that we dyed naturally with the help of a vegetable I usually hate: Onions.

First, you are going to need a couple of onions. Beauty of this type of dyeing is that it does not matter what color the onions are. Each and every egg will come out different. Sure, you can put brown onions together and have red onion skins in the other pot, but where is the fun in that?

Skin a couple of onions, depending on the size of your pot or the number of eggs. Generally, the more onion skins you use, the deeper the color. Put the skins in the pot, and cover them with water. Make sure that all the skins are covered with water. Add five tablespoons of vinegar and three tablespoons of olive oil. Cover the pot, put it on the stove and let the whole thing simmer, for at least 30 minutes.

Now, you have some time and you can use it to prepare the eggs. You can go with just putting the eggs in the water when it is time, but what about the designs? Go outside to the nearest patch of grass and pick some flowers and plants. I usually use shamrocks, daisies, and other greenery.

You will also need something to tie the plants to the eggs. I usually buy the cheapest nylon socks available or you can also use medical porous gauze if you have that at hand. Gently press the chosen plant design to the egg and put both in the nylon sock. Tie the sock as close to the egg as possible and cut off the excess nylon. Do that for the rest of the eggs as well.

Carefully add each egg to the pot and bring to a boil. Boil as long as you usually boil an egg, I usually have them in for about seven minutes. All that remains is taking the eggs out, and carefully cutting the nylon sock to free them. You can also have the eggs in longer, so they will get darker. If you want, you can also use some fat to make the eggs shinier.

Voila! Naturally dyed Easter Eggs.