I am making cake balls and tinting my white candy melts with CK powdered food coloring (cherry pink) and there are tiny little specks of pink throughout.

anyway to get rid of this?

I was trying to avoid buying 7 bags of candy melts in different colors.. so I just bought the food color. hmm.

TIA

oh i tried mixing it with a touch of oil, and that didn't help.

Have you tried mixing the melted choco w/a wire whip/whisk?

It is undissolved color.

should i do this in my KA? or by hand?

would that add Air/bubbles to it?

haven't tried it but if you suggest it I will!

I am also thinking it might be that the color is alil old? like a year. I bought some new other colors and will open those up to see if that makes a difference. I didn't wanna spend 4.75 per bottle for the liquid candy colors... ergh.

Sorry I couldn't get back to you sooner.
What did you do and how did it turn out?

Usually I use a small hand wisk in a figure 8, stiring slowly. That way you won't get bubbles. You will be amazed at how much of a difference it makes.

nope. still not working. i haven't tried a new bottle of food color yet.

i will today.

here is a photo of what it looks like, the dollop is about the size of a quarter. the specks r really small. I am just stumped. I tried sifting through the smallest strainer I had.. didn't help. mixed the heebee jeebees outa it.. no luck.

thanks for helping Kakeladi! worst case senerio i guess I will go by liquid colors or precolored candy melts.

Oh, I'm sorry
Maybe your melts are old or you overheated them.

I just bought my melts.. from a place that has good turnover... so I hope that is not the case.

I will try melting slower, but it happend in 2 batches. still haven't tried the other food color. I will. I will keep you updated

Thanks for your help. Its okay, they are "just" for my bf, but i hate when things don't do what they should.

I came into this thread looking for the same answer. Whenever I use powdered color ... in chocolate or in icing ... I get the specks, too.

So now my powdered colors are just sitting in the kitchen getting old.

ok I tried it with new color and its still not smooth as it should be.

wish I had an answer for you indydebi. So do you use liquid candy color? my cake shop its $4 a bottle (4-6oz i think, i really want the little amercolor .79 oz bottles for 1.29).. and i need 5 colors... but only maybe a teaspoon of each.. grr.

i guess its off to buy pre-colored melts.

i use the gels or the paste. be sure not to use a water-based color in your melts.

drove down to the "far" cake shop and picked up americolor in the 4oz bottles 5 for $17 bux. not bad i guess. they didn't have the small bottles.

im crossing my fingers they work and hopefully i get a better color too.

if it works for indydebi its good enough for me! lol. thanks for your help. I will try to post photos if all goes well.

I was just looking for the answer to this question and here you are, you've already answered it. I just tried my powdered FC today too. Not happy with the specks. I used it for fondant, I mixed it in at the liquid stage and it had a good long time to dissolve. I am wondering if it will break down any more as the fondant rests overnight...but I'm not holding my breath. Thank goodness I only have two containers of it unlike you Debi!

So...anyone want to offer up some clever uses for powdered food color?? Wait, here are some answers... http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-613445-.html Maybe I'll try it with the vodka next time I want to paint something in those colors.

ETA some other links about how to use these devlish colors
getting it to work http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-595929-.html
really, seriously, it's for painting http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-583543-.html

(to the OP: sorry, I know this doesn't help you any with your melts )

all went well! holy crap the oil colors are SO much easier and you get a MUCH better color from them. hehe I am so excited!

I can't return the unopened food color to my cake shop... so im out almost 10 bux... had I just bought the oil color in the first place... damn.

regarding the specks in chocolate its propably the fact that powered colours are normally water based and that might react ith the chocolate. Oil based colours are def the best.

If you want to use powered colours in fondant the best is to disolve it in a few drops of water, basically making a paste. Then mix it into the fondant and let it rest overnight. The next day knead the fondant well. This should eliminate the little flecks.

thanks riana....

the powder color was specifically sold for chocolates. this is why i was confused. lesson learned!

supposedly you can mix it with vodka and dip gp roses and flowers in it?!?!? gotta get rid of it somehow.