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Homemade Vanilla
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Ingredients
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• Vanilla beans (6 per each cup of liquor) click here for beans
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• Liquor (at least 80 proof of vodka), brandy or bourbon
• Jar with a tight sealing lid, size depends on the amount you're making. I use these.
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Instructions
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1. Slit each vanilla bean lengthwise, then cut into 2-inch pieces. This exposes more bean (and seeds) to the liquor.
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2. Add liquor and beans to the container. Seal, then shake a few times. I try to shake every day but I usually end up
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shaking the container when I see or remember it. Store it in a cabinet where it's dark.
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3. You can start using it in about 3 months. It truly gets better as it ages. After a couple of uses, top it off with more
liquor. Not too much, a little at a time and don't remove the beans.
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Options
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• For gift-giving, strain the vanilla (save the beans) into a nice bottle (I like these) and add 1 vanilla bean. The bean can
be cut in half if need be. Always keep the beans submerged, whether making or gifting the vanilla.
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• Vanilla will last almost indefinitely, especially if it has been strained.
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• Brandy with vanilla beans makes a wonderful liqueur.
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Tips
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• Never use plastic to store vanilla, ever!
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• Don't worry about the teeny tiny vanilla seeds if they are left in the vanilla;
that is where a lot of the flavor comes from.
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