Today I went to the Olympia Food Co-op to pick up some Ecos laundry detergent and I remembered that I wanted to get some vanilla beans to make some extract.

It’s a pretty simple process of letting split vanilla beans soak in vodka for a couple of months.  The result is a wonderful homemade vanilla extract that is a fraction of the cost of store bought extract.  There are lots of blogs about how to make some, Joy the Baker, is one that gives simple instructions.

I bought the cheapest vodka I could find and some nice Tahitian vanilla beans. I used a  Le Parfait canning jar that I had sitting around and fitted it with a new spare gasket.

I want to get more vodka and beans to fill up the jar, but this is a good start.

After a good shake it is already starting to tint a little bit.  I’m looking forward to the day it’s a beautiful brown

I wanted to make vanilla extract last year for Christmas gifts, but I just didn’t get to it.  So I was determined to get a batch going early this year.

My hands still smell like vanilla after handling the beans. :) Mmmmm.