DIY: Real Vanilla Extract aka Patience Pays Off, Literally.

Real vanilla extract is a cornerstone in any cook's pantry. The smells are a deep warm floral, and it's no wonder why. A vanilla bean is actually the pollinated seed pod of a unique variety of tropical orchid. When you mix this lovely bean with a good quality alcohol- and plenty of patience, you have something a true baker would envy. 

I'm going to teach you my tricks for making the best bottle of vanilla extract you have ever had, but I warn you- it can take up to 6 months to get a rich finished product! If you can wait this amount of time, you can save yourself a load of money as well!

(The bottle on the left is dark and aged a year, the one on the right is aged with beans for only 3 weeks! You can see my cat in the background, aka sous chef and clean up crew. I also have an abnormal amount of cooking books that were collected, inherited, and obsessively ordered in moments of weakness). 

Real Vanilla Extract:
Ingredients: 

1) Get yourself a high quality gluten free alcohol. I suggest starting with vodka- making sure it is NOT flavored. Vodka doesn't have much of a flavor, yet richly absorbs the flavors you put into it. I like to keep to my roots and suggest Prairie Vodka (a MN made alcohol that is organic, gluten free, and reasonably priced!). Find out if it's available near you: http://www.prairieorganicspirits.com/

2) Beans really are the magical fruit in this recipe. I found my vanilla beans on amazon. I would say that $20 or less for 10 beans is a great price. You'll need 5 beans (although more always makes it richer). I used very dry beans this last time and it was fine.

Directions:

1) You will need to split the beans in half. Run a knife all the way down them. If you bought very dry beans and they feel like they will break instead of slice- put the whole beans in the bottle unsliced and let them soak for a week or more to soften.  

2) Now you will need to scrape out the sliced bean. This is easy to accomplish once you get the bean positioned correctly (sliced side up). Take the knife and run it down the bean flattening it out. You will see dark junk collecting as it runs down it, these are the seeds. You will want to put these seeds back in the alcohol- so save them for the next step!

3) Put all the sliced beans and seeds back into the bottle. I pour some of the alcohol in a measuring glass with a pour spout. That way I can swirl the seeds in there and pour it all back into the bottle at once. 

4) Time for patience! Put your closed up bottle back in the pantry and let it absorb the flavors. Whenever you go in the pantry- give the bottle a good shake- making sure the beans and seeds get swirled around. Some suggest doing this everyday... I ain't got time for that!! Who does?!?! So I shake it when I can. I put the bottle right by the sugar and baking goods, that way it tends to get shook more often. Yes, I bake too much. You can start using the bottle as soon as you start smelling a good vanilla aroma- but the longer it ages- the richer the flavor. 

Lastly- Don't throw the used beans out!! Add them to your next bottle, or use them in recipes like puddings, creme brulee, hot cocoa, and more! On a financial note- a 750 ml (25+ oz) bottle of Prairie Vodka runs about $19, vanilla beans will be about $19 for 5 or more. This mix will cost you about $38, and you'll end up with extra beans for another bottle. How much would 25 ounces of real organic vanilla extract cost? About $47 not including shipping. You save money, and you end up with extra beans. You will already have the beans for your next bottle- so your only investment next time would be the vodka- $19. Just look at how yummy that looks- and you did it yourself! Nice job.