Thursday, September 2, 2010

Makin' vanilla

I made a large amount of homemade vanilla last week.  I've made it before but in small quantities.  Now, I've made a gallon and hope to have vanilla for a long time plus give some away in pretty bottles as gifts.  Real vanilla extract is so much better than imitation and if you need another reason to not use imitation, read this link:http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/why-you-shouldnt-use-imitation-vanilla
She also has a recipe on her site for how to make the extract.  It's super easy!

First you split the beans almost to the top like this....


I had an Ikea jar that was about 1/2 a gallon so I used 40 beans per jar.


Then you fill the jar with a 1.75 liter of Vodka.


Then you place the jars in a dark place like the back of a cabinet or pantry for about 6 months.
After six months, you strain the beans and put the vanilla in jars to use.  It will keep indefinitely!


3 comments:

  1. That does look easy, Tanya. I would like to see how you split the beans. Where did you buy the vanilla? What vodka did you buy?

    How are you liking the books?

    Elise

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  2. I bought the vanilla beans from Amazon(they had the best price) and the vodka is the cheap stuff...I read it doesn't matter what kind you buy so we went cheap(like $8 a bottle)
    I'm lovin' Pillars of the Earth!!! Thank you so much for lending them to me!

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  3. I knew you would love Pillars of the Earth. I have only seen one episode of the miniseries but so far it's very well done.

    Hope you guys have a good week!

    Elise

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