Homemade Extracts

Homemade Extracts

Vanilla Extract

• 2-3 Vanilla beans, split lengthwise
• 3/4 cup - Vodka
• glass bottle with lid/cork

1. Pick a glass bottle that can hold a whole vanilla bean. Clean and dry completely. Place vanilla beans in the bottle and cover completely with vodka. Seal well and place in a cool, dark place in your kitchen. Give it a shake every day or so for the first week. 

Notes: Within 3 days you will begin to notice a light brown color and the extract was strong enough to use within 2 weeks. A month would be ideal but if you want to use it sooner start off with extra vanilla beans. I used 4-5 beans in my current batch and add more vodka as I use some of it. I buy my vanilla beans on Amazon from this supplier, its a great deal and the quality has been great. You can use vanilla beans in the extract for recipes as well. They will be super moist and you can squeeze out the seeds easily.

Lemon/Orange Extract

 

• 1-2 - whole organic lemons or 1 orange
• 3/4 cup - Vodka
• glass bottle with lid/cork

1. Wash and dry fruit thoroughly before peeling off the thin outer layer. If any white pith remains, slice it off with a paring knife as they tend to add bitterness. Fill the bottle with peels and cover completely with vodka. Seal well and place in a cool, dark place in your kitchen. Shake the bottle gently one a day for 2-3 days. Check for readiness after a week or continue to steep longer.

Notes: Use organic fruit or fruit not treated with pesticides or wax coating since we will be using just the peels here. I wanted the extract to have a strong citrus flavor and used a high zest to vodka ratio. Some recipes I saw online suggested straining the extract after a month but I've had mine steeping for about 3 months now it had not turned bitter on me. But do check on your batch and strain if needed after you are satisfied with the flavor.

You can apply the same method to make flavored liqueurs. Below are raspberry and lemon (my take on chambord and limoncello) liqueurs getting ready to do their thing. For the raspberry (which was my fav of the two), I used 2 pints of organic berries and 2 cups of vodka. After steeping for 2 weeks all the color from the raspberry transfers to the vodka along with the their fabulous flavor. Strain gently, and add equal quantity of cooled simple syrup. Store for another 2 weeks before its ready to be served. A similar process for limoncello as well -