I don't know about you, but I love baking.
I go through A LOT of vanilla extract each year.
Real vanilla extract is expensive! Anywhere between $8-$12 a bottle.
Years ago I heard about making your own vanilla extract, and it is so easy!
You only need 2 ingredients.
I thought I would share how to make it and it also makes a great gift idea for this time of year.
Who wouldn’t be happy to receive a bottle of this?
It makes the
perfect hostess gift when you are invited to a Holiday Party, a great gift
for your child’s teacher, office staff, neighbors, etc!
Here is what you need to make 12 (2oz) bottles of Vanilla Extract:
- Vodka (use the cheap stuff!!!) Make sure it is at least 80 proof
- 10 Vanilla Beans (make sure they are B grade) I got mine HERE
- 12 (2oz) Glass Bottles. I got mine HERE
- Mini Funnel. I got mine HERE
- Personalized labels. I got mine HERE (Nancy is amazing to work with!)
- Bakers Twine
- Scissors
- Thin Black Sharpie
Directions:
Wash & dry your bottles (either in the dishwasher or with soap & water)
Cut the Vanilla Beans in Half. Then cut them in half again.
(You can split them down the middle if you want, but that isn't necessary)
Place 3 cut pieces of Vanilla Beans into the bottle:
Get your mini funnel and pour the vodka into the bottle
I filled them almost to the top.
I like these funnels because they are small & have an overflow section.
After you have filled up your bottles, put the lids on tightly.
Now it's time to put on the labels...I can't tell you how wonderful it was working with Nancy. She has TONS of labels & other types of customizable stickers in her shop. I ordered these labels right when the California fires were going on & USPS was delaying a lot of our mail, so the labels I ordered got lost in the mail for awhile. Nancy felt bad and sent me out another batch of labels free of charge. My original order finally showed up yesterday, so now I have 2 sets of labels...that means I will be making more homemade vanilla!
Her labels can be completely customized. I like how there was a space for the Batch Number (you don't have to have that on there, but I liked it and I put 112818...I made this batch of vanilla on November 28, 2018. It helps me keep track of when I made it, so I know when it's ready.
I tied some bakers twine on the bottles to make them look more festive :)
Your homemade Vanilla will be ready to use in 6-8 weeks. Every few days for the first month, give the bottle a shake.
For this batch, I had 1 extra vanilla bean, so I added it to my sugar container.
I've been putting a vanilla bean in my sugar for over 10 years..it makes the sugar taste and smell amazing.
When I give these as gifts in the next few weeks, I will tell them it won't be ready to use until January. I meant to make this homemade Vanilla last month, but never got around to it.
It’s easy to scale this recipe up or down.
The proportions are 3 whole
vanilla beans per 1 cup (8 oz) vodka OR
1 1/2 vanilla beans per 1/2 cup
(4 oz) vodka OR what I used
3/4 vanilla bean per (2oz) vodka.
The longer the beans stay in the vodka, the better the vanilla flavor (which is why you keep the vanilla beans in the glass jar)
This homemade vanilla is good for 5-6 years. If you run out, you can keep the same vanilla beans in the bottle, add more vodka and it will be ready in 6-8 weeks. It's the gift that keeps on giving.
I am keeping one of these bottles for myself because I am sick of buying store bought vanilla extract.
I have 6 Holiday parties in the next month and I can't wait to give these as a Hostess Gift.
I'm going to put them in a cute burlap bag and attach a cookie cutter to it.
Hope this tutorial was helpful and have fun making your own Homemade Vanilla!
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