Homemade Vanilla Extract

Homemade Vanilla Extract - One to two beans pre 4 oz. bottle.  This extract has been steeping for 1 week

Entering Costco last week, a glittering snowman surrounded by strings of blinking Christmas lights greeted my empty cart.  With our September San Diego temps and humidity boarding on my beloved tropic level, I have to admit that the snowman gave me no pleasure whatsoever, and even had me thinking of boycotting the looming holidays altogether.

With visions of shopping, wrapping, organizing and decorating filling my head, a shudder ran through my body, and I moved on to the safer grounds like the produce section - thankfully still bearing tree-ripened peaches and pallets of summer watermelons.  Avoiding the objectionable showman on my way out of the store, all holiday thoughts were pushed far from my mind.

Or were they...?  Reflecting on the amount of shopping I will need to do, I felt that little tightening in my stomach of, "What am I going to do?".  With so many little gifts needed throughout the season, I usually try to put together something homemade, something that I hope the teachers, neighbors, hostesses, etc will appreciate.  We've done tins of candy, nuts and/or cookies and breads.  Liv has given gifts of homemade jams and hot chocolate mixes, and we've made greeting cards and calendars from photos we've taken throughout the year.

But so far this year, I had nothing.  No ideas at all.  That's about the point that I reached into my pantry for vanilla extract for Liv and her brother's pancakes, only to find my bottle empty.  And there I had it, Homemade Vanilla Extract...

4 oz. jars, 1-2 beans per jar, filled with Vodka

Internet searches turned up very similar "recipes", or procedures.  A bottle, a vanilla bean and some sort of alcohol.  However, that's where some of the variances came in.

How long should the vanilla bean steep in the alcohol to be proclaimed "done"?  With recommendations ranging from 3 weeks to a minimum of 6 months, I already feel behind the power curve.  And what sort of alcohol should we use?  While most versions used vodka, some used bourbon or even rum.

And where would I find bottles at a reasonable price that still remained attractive enough for gift giving?  And last but not least, with vanilla beans in the local markets costing upwards of $5 per bean, how could I do this project and still keep my costs in check?

For the moment, the recipe will remain a work in progress, the beans and bottles were both found online, though, and at reasonable prices.  A tip for Beanilla Trading Company had both bourbon and my precious Tahitian vanilla beans in the mail for about $18 per 25 beans.  Shipping was not outrageous, and it was fast.  (Edited 10/21: I've since found plump Organic Vanilla Beans on Amazon! )

Vanilla Extract - 3 hours.

More internet researching brought me to these round bottles, that make the cutest gifts (here's where I'll admit to having a bit of a bottle/jar obsession...).  Comparison shopping for alternate ideas, I found these fun swing top bottles that I just ordered.

The rest was easy... with a full bottle of vodka in the cabinet, vodka became my alcohol of choice, though we may give a try to bourbon with a few of the leftover beans.

Slicing each bean down the center, I opened the bean (but did not scrape the seeds), allowing the alcohol to flow over the seeds as it steeps.  Placing the whole bean (or two) into the bottle, we filled the bottles with vodka, and sealed.

Setting up the bean and vodka filled bottles for an impromptu photo shoot, I loved the look of the beans in the clear liquid, but after snapping a quick shot or two, carpool duties took over.  Returning my focus to the bottles several hours later, Liv and I commented how the liquid had already begun pulling the vanilla ever so slightly from the beans giving a soft, light amber glow to the bottles (see instagram shot above - find us at: kimlivlife).

Tahitian Vanilla Extract - 1 week

Now, a week into our vanilla extract project, the liquid has taken on a lovely golden hue, and has a somewhat modest vanilla aroma.  With one week under our belt, I'm thinking that longer is better for the steeping process, but we will continue checking weekly to record the progress.

As such... if you are contemplating making vanilla extract for your 2012 holiday presents, I suggest getting going now, allowing a few months for optimum results.

So far I'm thrilled with the progress of our holiday experiment, and I'm eager to research sealing the bottles with wax and finishing with pretty ribbons or embellishments.  While I'm definitely not feeling "holidayish", visions of holiday gifts are beginning to fill my head.

To be continued... 
(Click here to see the finished product along with instructions on bottle sealing and labeling!)