Naturally Blue & Truly Green: Sustainable Ways to Embrace the Blue Food Trend
Blue may not be the first colour you think of when choosing foods with all-natural ingredients and clean labels. But the rising popularity of blue food, especially within the confectionery and sweet bakery realms, has also led to an increase in more earthy, non-synthetic blue products. Meaning we can all turn our tongues blue without worrying about consuming too many additives or chemicals!
Ready to find out how you can eat more blue while staying green? Keep reading to find out…
- What is blue food?
- Which fruits are blue fruits?
- What natural blue products are available to chefs and chocolatiers?
And keep an eye out for part two, where we’ll take a deep dive into blue flavours and how to pair them with chocolate couvertures, and much more…
by Lyndsey Hall
15 November 2024
Cordon Blue: What is Blue Food?
In some circles, blue food means anything that comes from the sea, but we’re not talking about seafood. For the purposes of this article, blue food means exactly that: food that is blue.
You’d be forgiven for thinking all blue food was packed full of artificial food colouring and additives, but there are a few naturally blue foods, thanks to something called anthocyanins. From blue fruits to spirulina, and even butterfly pea flower, there are probably more naturally blue products on the market than you ever imagined.
Spirulina, for example, is a blue-green algae that has long been hailed as a superfood for its high amounts of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and protein. It was first eaten by the Aztecs, so you know it’s all natural, and today is cultivated sustainably in freshwater pools. It can be added to fruit smoothies, soups and sauces, or used in baking, but it does have a slightly earthy, fishy flavour that you may need to mask with other bolder flavours.
Butterfly pea flower, also known as Asian pigeonwings, is a plant with a bright blue hue that is often used to create blue matcha powder, teas and lattes. It gives a light green tea flavour with only a hint of vegetal, so it’s perfect for blending with other subtle flavours. Packed with antioxidants, caffeine free and completely herbal, it’s a healthful and ‘green’ way to enjoy blue food (and drinks!).
Which Fruits are (True) Blue Fruits?
You may be wondering, ‘is blueberry the only blue fruit?’ The answer is no. There are a handful of fruits considered blue, mainly due to containing anthocyanins—a flavonoid with antioxidant benefits. Blackberries, plums and certain grapes also fall into the blue fruit category, as well as bilberries, elderberries and honeyberries.
Many of these fruits also possess anti-inflammatory properties, as well as being high in fibre and vitamin C. So, not only are blue fruits delicious and nice to look at, they’re also incredibly good for you!
Is Blue Raspberry a Real Fruit?
You’ve probably come across blue raspberry flavoured products out in the wild, and you might have asked yourself whether blue raspberries really exist. Sadly, blue raspberry is a manufactured flavouring and food colouring, based on the flavour of blackcap raspberries, and designed to differentiate raspberry flavoured products from their fellow red and pink toned cherry, strawberry and watermelon flavoured foods. Meaning that while blackcap raspberries are darker in colour (almost black when fully ripe) and do contain anthocyanins, they’re not technically a blue fruit.
Natural Blue Products for Chocolatiers, Chefs & Bakers
Whether you’re looking to add blue flavours or simply give your products an eye-catching blue appearance, we’ve got just the thing! From whole blue fruit and purées to blue coloured cocoa butters and topping sauces, there’s no limit to what you can turn blue. And the vast majority are au naturel, but we’ve included a few slightly less green products, just to give you some options.
Whole, Dried & Powdered Blue Fruits
If it’s real fruit you’re looking for, you’re in the right place. Our range of blue fruits includes whole blueberries in dextrose and freeze dried whole blackberries, which are perfect for adding into chocolate bars and bark, as well as spray dried blackcurrant powder, elderberry spray dried powder and freeze dried blackcurrant powder. Powdered fruit is great sprinkled onto still-wet chocolate, or stirred into cream, ganache and gelato, and can even be used to colour and flavour mousses and sauces.
Or for a more indulgent option, try Cassis in Liqueur, which are the finest variety of berry, Noir de Bourgogne, harvested in the Loire Valley and macerated in Crème de Cassis. A true luxury, not just for the blue blooded!
Blue Fruit Purées
Ravifruit’s ambient fruit purées allow you to add fruit flavours to your ganache, ice cream, baked goods and more. Shelf stable for up to 12 months, these premium quality purées are made from 90% fruit and 10% sugar, and are completely natural with no added colours, flavours or preservatives. Perfect for giving your products a blue look and taste without ruining your clean label!
Our Blackcurrant Purée is rich and tart with a hint of earthiness: ideal for creating a delicious paté de fruits or gel filling for a bar or bonbon, or even a fruity cocktail!
Blue Fruit Flavourings
Our range of blue fruit flavouring pastes and compounds from MSK, Kessko and Colac gives your baked goods, ganache and gelato a bold, fruity flavour and a subtle purple-blue hue. Colac’s Blueberry Flavour Compound is a completely natural product made with blueberries and blueberry purée, blended until smooth. It’s a brilliantly economical way to add a blueberry flavour to any cream-based fillings or cake batter.
Kessko’s Blackcurrant Flavour Paste is made from blackcurrant juice, natural cassis flavouring, bilberry juice concentrate and beetroot juice concentrate. With a fresh currant flavour and a blue-black colour, this flavouring paste is perfect for creating an indulgent blackcurrant ganache or gelato.
Our Blackberry Flavour Compound comes from MSK and gives your fillings and frosting a great, natural blackberry flavour and purple-blue colour, with pieces of real blackberry for added texture. This product does contain artificial colours, including E124 Ponceau 4R, a red colouring that is one of the Southampton Six—colours that have been linked to hyperactivity in children. So, if you prefer to keep your flavourings and colourings all natural, you may want stick to fresh and freeze-dried blackberries.
Natural Blue Food Colourings
If you’d prefer to simply colour your creations without adding flavour, we’ve got a variety of food colouring options, many of which are completely natural.
Roxy & Rich Natural Blue and Natural Midnight Blue are made from real ingredients, including spirulina and red cabbage anthocyanin, making them a pure and simple way to colour or decorate your chocolate bars and bonbons. Stir into white chocolate, or splatter into your chocolate moulds before shelling for a beautiful, moulded bonbon that will have your customers singing the blues!
Roxy & Rich recently added colouring gels to the range, which are made using artificial colours, but neither Blue Ocean or Midnight Blue use colours from the Southampton Six, so if you’re looking for a more intense and vibrant shade for your chocolate or patisserie, they’re a great option.
Mona Lisa Studio also offers an E Free Blue Cocoa Butter that is non-azo and from natural origin, or you can opt for their E Free Blue Powder Colour if you’d rather work with dry ingredients and avoid adding extra cocoa butter to your creations.
Fancy creating your own unique shades? IBC Power Flowers™ allow you to blend colours to suit your needs, and the Blue from Natural Origin is made with spirulina, so it’s 100% natural with a great blue colour. Combine it with the Red from Natural Origins to achieve your preferred shade of purple for all your blue fruit flavoured designs!
Blue Topping Sauces
Decorate your desserts, ice cream sundaes and more with our eye-catching blue sauces! For a fresh and fruity flavour, Colac Blueberry Topping Sauce is made from blueberries and elderberry juice and would be incredible drizzled over a cheesecake or vanilla ice cream. Colac’s Blue Bear Topping Sauce is a little less natural, with a light blue colour and sweet bubblegum taste, but it will definitely be popular with the young, and young at heart!
Blue Decoration & Presentation
Adding the finishing touch that seals the deal with your customers couldn’t be easier with our wide range of decoration and presentation products.
Our Blackberry Sugar Crunch is a fun, all-natural way to add a fruity flavour, purple colour and great texture to your chocolate and bakery items.
Print an edible design onto your chocolate products with cocoa butter transfer sheets. If you’re yet to try these clever transfers, made using coloured cocoa butters on a silicon sheet, then now’s the perfect time! Choose from seasonal and all year-round designs; we’ve got plenty of blue patterns, just check the specifications to find out which artificial colours have been used.
If you like a little added shimmer in your blue decoration, we’ve got a handful of ways to make your creations shine. Pearl blue Creative Powder and Roxy & Rich’s Hybrid Petal Dust in shades Baby Blue, Hydrangea, Navy Blue and Wedgewood all contain artificial colours, and all but Navy Blue include Titanium Dioxide E171, an additive that is authorised for use in the UK but was banned by the European Union in 2022. Wedgewood also contains Tartrazine E102, another one of the Southampton Six, so these decorative powders are on the less natural side, but great for use in small doses to give your chocolate products a subtle blue sheen.
And for that final flourish, you could also choose to wrap your chocolates in Midnight Blue aluminium foil, and package your products in blue boxes with blue ribbons!
Have we inspired you to add blue to your range of flavours and colours? Whether you whip up a delicious blueberry ganache in a dark chocolate shell, or drizzle blueberry sauce over a creamy, vanilla cheesecake, or simply decorate your next collection of bars and bonbons with blue cocoa butter, you’ll be bang on trend and catching the eye of every customer who comes along.
In our next blog, we’re diving into the ocean of blue flavour pairings and helping you to choose the right chocolate couverture for your blue fruits!
We love seeing what you create, so don’t forget to tag us on social media @keylinkltd so we can see all your incredible blue chocolates and baked goods. Go forth and turn the air in your chocolate shop or bakery blue!
Lyndsey is a marketing executive, writer and lover of books and chocolate from Sheffield.
Her favourite chocolate is Cacao Barry Lactee Superieure.