The Farmers' Market and Making Vanilla Extract

Vanilla Extract

I like researching how to make expensive items instead of buying them. It is a hobby of mine. One essential that I have recently made in quantities that I could sell is Vanilla Extract. It is easy and fun! 

You take a bottle of Vodka or Rum, you put a pile of Vanilla Beans into the bottle and put it in the dark for 3-4 months, or more for an especially strong batch. 

There are multiple types of Vanilla beans: the ones that I have been getting are Madagascar Vanilla Beans. They are supposed to be gourmet because people tend to prefer the Madagascar flavor more than others. But there are others, like Tahitian and Mexican. They all taste like Vanilla, but some have different hints of undertone because they come from a different jungle orchid. 

That is right: Vanilla Beans come from a jungle orchid! I found that out while reading up on orchids. I have several books on them and found out a few months ago while reading up on types of Orchids so I could see about the care of two Orchids that I had bought at the store on clearance. Then I got interested in whether or not Vanilla, which comes from an Orchid, is something I could grow on my own. And, NOPE! Like an emphatic, "No, absolutely not!" If people could grow it themselves, they would be doing it already.

Then, I decided to research making my own vanilla bean extract. It was a lot more doable. So I did. If you need a beginner homestead project, this is the one to try!

Speaking of bad ideas...I will say this: sometimes buying a plant that is on clearance is a bad idea. When I "saved" the orchids with root rot, they slowly died over the next few months despite my caring for them, trimming their roots and doing everything I could to save them. That being said, I’ve also rescued a number of plants from being tossed at the store and revived them, but a Vanilla Orchid of any kind is probably not going to be one of them as they are quite a trade secret as well as expensive. Since I am a novice with orchids, this is not something I need to be experimenting on unless I want to waste money.

Back to the Vanilla Extract Story:

Right now, I have 12-2 ounce bottles of Vanilla in a box if anyone would like to buy some. I have sold about half of the ones I had in the past week. They are filled to the brim with Madagascar Vanilla that I started soaking back in August. I had ten beans in there, so it has a nice aroma and flavor. I’m also looking for the rest of my beans (I ordered more.) so I can start soaking another batch. I am looking for $7 a bottle for my smaller ones. It has the same, or better, quality (more powerful) than you can find in the store but will cost about the same amount.

I also have a batch of Madagascar Vanilla soaked in Rum. It is a treat! It smells so good! Those are $25 for each 8oz jar. Again, this is far more powerful than sold in stores!

Let me know if you are interested!

Corrie@PilgrimBotanist.blog

Corrie