Easy 2 ingredient vanilla extract

Who else takes a deep breath of their vanilla extract when they bake??
So far I have not met anyone who did not like the smell of vanilla.  At least the TRUE grown in the earth vanilla from a vanilla bean pod.  See? There is that difference between REAL creation designed for our use and health benefit vs. artificial and non nutritive.  It’s everywhere……..sigh.  If you have not yet made your own vanilla extract then now is the time.  It is SO EASY, 2 ingredients and the aroma and flavor far far far outweigh the artificial vanilla essence which pales in comparison.

Once you have made your own DIY vanilla extract then compare the aroma and flavor with the store bought variety – there is just no match.   This is a really good foodie example as to why I am an Advocate for essential oils.  They are REAL – aromatic herbs and spices grown in the earth and designed by a Creator.  They have medicinal properties.  Not a fakey feel good smell but BENEFICIAL  in a variety of ways.  I am so in love with the earth and what it provides for our benefit.

If you are old hat to a back to nature lifestyle and from scratch recipes then you KNOW what I’m talking about.  And if you are new to the journey of back to basics, down home, from scratch, from the earth goodness this is THEE recipe to start with.  An easy peasy cupboard switch to start you on the path of home made JOY!  AND it’s aroma is  so delicious and adds the most sensational flavor to baked goods and more !  When you need to you can just open your bottle of vanilla extract and take a whiff and feel…..HAPPY !

We *recently received our shipment  ( *written in Feb 2019) of things we sent from the USA – pretty exciting times around here.  I had carefully packed some Madagascar vanilla bean pods in a sealed glass canning jar.  It was time……. I had gifted my on going batch back in the States and so happy to be starting my own batch again.

So first you need your 2 ingredients:  1.  vanilla bean pods 2.  vodka or bourbon  – my personal opinion is that vodka gives the vanilla  cleaner vanilla-esque flavor.

THIS DOES NOT GET EASIER – in fact it’s one of my all time favorite kitchen events.  Next you want to locate a cool bottle to store your vanilla. My suggestion would be a cool flip top airlock glass bottle. These bottles come with chalkboard labels and a pen – especially great if you want to gift your vanilla and the bottles also double for great home made kombucha.  << see recipe ! All of this and more can be found on my Must Have Market. Select the bottles and vanilla beans and put them in your cart ! Grab some vodka on your next trip to the store and you are set!

I have to wait for my next trip stateside to get those cute bottles- they are on my Must Have list.  For now, I grabbed a used and cleaned glass bottle from a favorite cider available here which gives my vanilla extract a distinct Africa design – then took out my Kansas cowboy bottle stopper so I wouldn’t forget where I have been….. HA!!  Now for the best part EVER!!!  Slicing the vanilla bean pods.  Take a sharp knife and grab the curly end of the vanilla bean.  Then slice down the middle of the pod all the way to the bottom.  Don’t slice it through – just slice it open!  You’ll be able to feel what you are doing.

That’s IT!  No worries whatsoever if some of the vanilla bean paste gets stuck on your knife or comes out – here is a pic to show you what the paste looks like

  Add that to some cane sugar and you’ve got the best vanilla sugar around!  It’s such a great idea to keep some vanilla bean pods in your pantry !  So now it’s time to put it all together – honestly this whole process, once you have the ingredients and bottle – can take you about a minute.  SO WORTH IT !

Measure out 1 cup or 8 oz of vodka and then pour it into your bottle of choice.  Stuff the sliced vanilla bean pods into the bottle with your vodka in it.  IF the beans pods are too tall then simply cut them in half – you really can’t mess this up.  This is an infusion…the two ingredients simply need to be together. If some of the bean paste is floating around – no biggie !

                             

All that is left to do after that is add your cover, in my case the Kansas cowboy bottle stopper – yee haw! Give it a shake to start the infusion process then store your easy 2 ingredient vanilla extract in a dark area of the house and let sit for a good couple of months before using.  Every few days I give it another little shake.  In the pics you can see how it looks after a few days – the vanilla extract is already starting to take shape

      Is that not gorgeous??????  I’m calling it:  AFRICAN COWBOY VANILLA EXTRACT !

There are plenty of recipes out there showing you how to make vanilla extract – I wanted to share my version and encourage you to make the switch.  It’s an easy switch and a healthy switch and the aromatic and flavorful  JOY it brings is so comforting.  I like to keep everything simple around my house so when I see my vanilla extract running low I just slice another vanilla bean pod or two ( depending how low the bottle is) and top up with vodka.  Give it a shake and wait a week or two.

For Must Have ingredients to make our own 2 ingredient vanilla extract and all our favorite homestead tools and pantry items ~ check out our Must Have Market! 

This recipe is so like essential oils.  Taking a part of nature and making it into a type of tincture for either  aromatic, topical or internal use!

This is what I LOVE about the earth !  Getting back to basics with a simple 2 ingredient pantry staple!  Leave a comment below if you make your own vanilla extract or even if you are thinking about it!!

Interested in learning more about essential oils but just don’t get what their all about or how to use them?  You can check out my essential oils INFO PAGE OR Register for a FREE  essential oil consultation with ME.  No commitments   – just an opportunity to talk oils and ask questions.