Homemade Vanilla Extract

AKA, Why my friends and fans force me to buy alcohol……

I know it is only September, but now is the time you need to start this project if you want to have the final prized product available for Christmas gift giving.

So who doesn’t like vanilla ? Vanilla ice cream, vanilla cupcakes, vanilla late, vanilla Tiramisu – Vanilla must be the most popular flavor on Planet Earth. Vanilla is one of the oldest and most nutritious spices, it is often considered a stimulant and aphrodisiac as a food and fragrance.  It is my favorite and probably yours too! Here are some cool facts I dug up in the internet about those beans:

7 Cool Facts About Vanilla Beans

1. A vanilla bean is a dark pod of a climbing orchid, native to Central America. More than 75 % of all vanilla is grown in Madagascar and Reunion.

2. Mexican vanilla is the most prized complex and delicate, followed by Madagascar vanilla with a rich and creamy flavor.

3. Quality vanilla beans are fragrant, dark brown or black in color, glossy, moist, supple and long. The tiny black seeds should be scraped from the pod with the point of a pairing knife.

4. Real vanilla is hand- pollinated, hence the reason why it is so expensive. It is the second most expensive spice after Saffron, 5 kg of fresh vanilla pods are needed to get 1 kg cured vanilla beans.

5. In the U.S.A any product labeled ” vanilla extract ” by law- must derive from true vanilla.

6. Store vanilla beans in a cool dark place in an airtight container. In the tropics they are wrapped in waxed or oiled paper and stored in boxes.

7. Never refrigerate vanilla beans or they will harden and crystallize.

So here is my reason for teaching you a little bit about vanilla beans.  I want you to think about how you bake.  You always pull that little bottle of vanilla “flavoring” out of the cabinet to flavor your foods.  You should not be using a “flavoring”, you should be using an extract.  You will find your baked goods taste so much better with extract.  Now a lot of you will say that it is so much more expensive buying extract as compared to the “flavoring”.  True, but how about if we made it ourselves.

So, I took matters into my own hands and ordered my vanilla beans off the internet.  I ordered a high quality Madagascar bean.  You can get them in bulk and use them for this, and for using directly in your cooking.  I also forced myself to go to the liquor store just for you, my followers, to buy 2 large bottles of Vodka.  This is where those of you who know me need not comment on my liquor store run.  Remember, I did this for you.  By the way, you can buy the cheap vodka as you see I did in my picture below.  I buy the good stuff for my personal consumption.

You will also need a a glass gallon jug.  I had a bunch of these in my pantry.  Now I know the one below looks a lot like an empty jug of wine, and maybe it is.  But that does not give you a reason to again judge my alcohol consumption….LOL.

You will also need about 80 vanilla beans.  Of course you can make smaller amounts and use less beans, but since I am making this to give away for Christmas gifts, I make a bunch at a time.  (This is where my friends need to completely forget anything you just read on here about Christmas gifts.)

Using a sharp paring knife, slice these tropical treasures right down the center leaving them just connected at the end as below.

After slicing them, put them into your glass jug.

Now, this is the part I hate.  I have to part with my Vodka for at least 3 months.  BTW, don’t tell anyone, but this also makes a great vanilla flavoring for a Vanilla Martini or other Vanilla cocktails.  Of course, this is just something I read on the internet.  Now you have a full jug of Vodka and Vanilla beans.

You can now place this jug in the back of a closet or other cool dark place for about 3-4 months.  Take it out about once a week and give it a good shake to mix it up.  Below is a quart jar of Vanilla extract that I made for my own use.  You can see the nice dark amber look of it now.  I keep it in a dark cabinet.  You can also buy amber colored bottles to put it in, as I will do for my Christmas gift giving.

 

So as you can see.  This is not only a fun project, but one you can share with your family and friends as gifts.  Take some time in August or September to make your extract, then it will be ready to gift come Christmas.

Enjoy, and remember, if you want to make smaller batches you can:

• 1/2 gallon of vanilla….use 1/2 gallon of vodka (1.75 liters) and 40 Vanilla Beans
• 1 quart of vanilla…use one quart of vodka and 20 Vanilla Beans