Vanilla Essence VS Imitation Vanilla Essence

[Katie H]

Here's a trick for making your own vanilla extract (or perhaps the right word is infusion). Just get yourself a cup of top quality Vodka like Grey Goose or Belvedere or whatever, and then chop up a couple of vanilla pods and bottle them up in the vodka for about a month, shaking the botle up every once in a while. At the end, strain through cheesecloth and you've got your vanilla infusion.

Omigosh, jasonr! Don't waste your Grey Goose and Belvedere. Use the least expensive vodka to make homemade vanilla. I've been making my own vanilla for many, many years and only use the least expensive vodka.

I use a large glass jar with a tightly sealing top. The one I currently have is one that Vlasic sauerkraut came in.

I filled it with vodka, then bruised three vanilla beans. Splilt them and scraped the seeds into the vodka-filled jar. I broke up the vanilla pods and put them in, too. Screwed on the lid tightly and shook the jar. I kept it in a cool, dark place and shook it about once a month. It takes about a year to get good vanilla. Two years for great vanilla.

My "supply" is about half gone now, so I need to start another jar so I won't be without. That's in my plan for tomorrow.