I came across this recipe for making your own vanilla extract. Hmmm, I thought. Why make my own vanilla extract?? Well, it turns out that it’s kind of fun, very easy, and just like most things you make, it’s probably going to taste better than the store bought stuff. Anyway, I won’t know for six months because it takes that long to mature.
I’m game, so if you’re feeling like it might be fun to have your own home made vanilla for holiday baking and gifts, give this recipe a try. I shopped around online for decent prices on vanilla beans, but New Seasons had them for $1.59 each when you go to the bulk section. Bulk is great because you can carefully select the most plump and juicy beans. Don’t buy them in the little glass jars in the spice aisle or you’ll spend about $10 each. That seems to be about $8.41 for the little glass jar! Yikes!!
The recipe calls for 8 vanilla beans per cup of vodka so I needed 12 beans because the vodka came in a a 375ml which is about 1 1/2 cups. I chopped the beans and put them with the vodka in a dark glass bottle for the maturing process. After six months of weekly shaking I’ll strain the liquid into individual bottles for my own use and for gifts. The vanilla will last many, many years.
Follow this link to a very good tutorial on how to make the extract and frequently asked questions. I’ll be anxious for the first of December and the uncorking. I’ll keep you posted!
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