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Herbs & Spices: Bottle Your Own Vanilla Extract

Source of Recipe

The Columbian
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You can purchase whole vanilla beans at most grocery stores in the spice aisle. They usually come packaged in a glass tube. The best beans will look plump and slightly shiny.

Simply split one side of one vanilla bean lengthwise, spreading it open slightly with the knife. Slide it into a sterilized, pint-sized bottle (for much stronger vanilla, add two beans). Fill the bottle with a very fine, higher proof vodka . (The stronger the alcohol base, the more flavor will be pulled from the bean.)

Seal tightly and store in a cool, dark place. Lightly shake the bottle every day for a few weeks. The longer you let the bottle sit, the stronger and richer the vanilla flavor will be. About 3 months will produce a fine, medium-strength vanilla extract.

If you want even stronger vanilla, scrape all of the seeds from the bean and chop the skin before bottling it up with the vodka. This method will require straining through a coffee filter and rebottling to eliminate any floating flecks and bits of skin from your recipes.