From Russia With Love ~ Vanilla Extract

This vanilla extract is a knock out!  Simple to make, easy to do,  and highly recommended for those that love to bake and  make simple preserving projects.

We started this project months ago and left this over sized bottle of vodka on the counter for over two months to mature.  While, I suspect it could have been bottled ages ago, a little extra time doesn’t harm it at all.   Many will suggest this is a great gift for Christmas and I’d agree, but don’t forget birthdays for those in your life that are born to cook.  This stuff is much more delicious and special then that every day vanilla extract you will pick up at the grocery store.  This stuff is made with pure ingredients and LOVE!

We started out with a big bottle of vodka and lots of vanilla beans (purchased inexpensively on eBay).  Then, we waited a while…a long while…until today…when we decided that it was time to clear the counters and put this stuff into new bottles.

On the left, you will see the beginning stages, on the day the vanilla beans were added and on the right you will notice the change in colour after two months of maturing.

We poured this ginormous bottle (3L) of homemade vanilla extract into 6 x 500mL bottles.  We added 1/4 of a cup of Barcardi Dark Rum and two new vanilla beans (split in half) to each bottle to enhance the sweet vanilla flavour.  Note: we used a jelly bag to strain some of the loose vanilla particles.

Put up Total:

• 6 x 500mL bottles (reused)