Are you thinking of Christmas presents yet?
Vanilla extract is one that doesn’t take much thought, just some planning, and a bit of assembly. Fancy it up as much as you like.
All you need are
vanilla beans (I like these)
alcohol: vodka or bourbon are the usual, but I also made some using BRANDY last year and it smells so good and I can’t wait to use it in all kinds of baked goods. You also don’t need premium vodka, the people at the liquor store said cheap vodka will work just as well as the more pricey ones.
and bottles.
You can use just about any bottle/jar, but I *love* these cobalt blue bottles from Mountain Rose Herbs.
These little funnels are also helpful.
There’s no recipe for this really. I like using 2 beans, split lengthwise and halved crosswise for little bottles and 4 larger ones. I also dumped a whole bunch into a half-finished bottle of brandy for good measure. Heeeee.
Put in the bottle, add alcohol, cap, and shake. That’s it! And of course, the longer you let it steep, the more concentrated the flavor becomes. Past the 6-month mark though, I wouldn’t know the difference (between a 6-month and a 12-month, let’s say) so you’ll have to try it out yourself.
People have done 30-day vanilla extracts, 3 months, and 6 months (my personal recommendation) — but since we’re only 2 months away ’til Christmas, you might want to add a little note for your giftee to be patient if they can be.
Your favorite baker will love you!!
Other sources for vanilla beans:
Beanilla has quite the selection, if you want to try different kinds/origins
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