Tasty Tuesday ~ Homemade Vanilla

Did you know you could make your own vanilla?  It's really easy.  The hardest part is buying the vodka that you will need. But if you send your hubby, then there is no hard part. ;)  All you need is vodka and vanilla beans.  The amount of both will determine how strong your vanilla is.  This  is the first time that I've tried it and I used a bottle of vodka (750 mL) and put in seven vanilla beans which is all that I could fit in the bottle.  You will need to slice open the beans length wise before you put them in.

Then just shake it up and put it in a dark place for 4-6 months.  You should shake it up every once in a while.  Then after you have patiently waited for what seems like forever, strain your vanilla through a coffee filter in a colander and then you are ready to go! Mine turned out a little on the weak side compared to the pure vanilla that I bought from Costco, so next time I will probably use a few more beans and put it all in a bigger jar. If you make it really strong (like 20 beans in 750mL) then you will only need to use about 1/2 of what the recipe calls for.  If you like using real vanilla, this will save you a ton of money because real vanilla is pricey!