I also love Penzey's... And for any one close they have one In Indy !

You use the same amount of paste as you do of extract. You will see the little flecks of vanilla seed in the baked goods. As I said earlier, I reserve it for items that don't have any competing flavors, i.e. white or yellow cakes, sugar cookies, vanilla pudding and custards.

One of my former cake decorating students bought me a large bottle of clear vanilla in Mexico on her cruise. it is the best! It makes my icing taste different in a better way and also cookies or anything that I make with it taste better and smell better.

I got my vanilla beans at chefdepot.com. They are beautiful. Fresh, and plump.

I was browsing the web last night and found this article regarding making your own extract: http://www.travelerslunchbox.com/journal/2007/10/9/project-vanilla.html She brings up using just a few whole pods to start, then add back the scraped pods into the extract brew (woman after my own heart - get the most out of it you can!)

She also recommends a couple of places to buy vanilla cheaply online - I may have to get some of those Tahitian beans

I so need to get to the store for some vodka today.

I, too, had heard that Mexican vanilla was exceptional...so when my hubby and I went there for vacation, I bought a large bottle.

I picked it up and told my DH that I wish I could smell it before I bought it and the lady overheard me...so she waved me over and had me smell what was in her bottle. I should have known something was up because her vanilla wasn't even in the same bottle as mine! But it smelled sooooo good!

So I bought it, got home, opened it...and it smelled like pina coladas!
I was so bummed! I hate getting scammed!!

Oh well...live and learn, right?

Well the first few new beans are on the job - buried in 5 lbs of sugar to flavor it. Then they'll be headed for a bottle of vodka as soon as I go buy one (my Goose is not getting wasted on this) to start brewing. My fingers smell nice and vanilla-y from just lightly handling them

Mmmmm... sooooo jealous!

Sorry to be dense about this, but a previous post stated that if it's clear, it's not real vanilla? My Mom brought me back clear vanilla from Mexico and it was so amazing, it was the best icing I'd ever made, for the entire bottle, which I went through quickly, lol. I have more from Mexico now, 2 kinds and one I'm not thrilled with, of course it's a huge bottle, the other is smaller and is the same as the first bottle my Mom brought me.

I guess the point to all my rambling is, if your not using clear vanilla, how do you get the crisp white icing I see on everyone's cakes?? Up here, we pay through the nose for pure vanilla, but I do tend to use Wilton's clear vanilla if I need white icing or fondant. Not my vanilla of choice, but it's all we got, lol. Thanks for any insight!

Tara

First of all, let me hop off subject for one second...

WELCOME TO YOUR THIRTIES LANI!!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! IT'S ALL OVER NOW!!!!

Um, sorry... anyway... Tarabell, I think you should let us know what brand that little bottle of clear Mexican vanilla was... just so we can, um, ya know... give you 'well informed' answers! Hehehehehe!

It's true that 'real' vanilla is brown, but that's not to say that you can't get your hands on some good imitation stuff. I use the clear to keep my icing white, and I like it. Sure, there are times that the pure stuff is preferable, but for white icing, I stress a little more almond. Some people just don't care, they let people know up front that the icing will have a light creamish tinge to it, but will taste amazing. You can't get IMBC pure white anyway to my knowledge, unless you can find that white butter.

I get my vanilla from Santo Domingo, it is suppose to be one of the best, and let me tell you it is, when I started using it people notice the difference.

I have many friends over there, when ever someone is going or coming I order at least four 32oz bottles two white two black. It is thick like molasses, and all you need is a little bit so it last a long time and all it cost is about $4.00 US dollar each bottle.

I have been thinking of contacting the company that makes is to see if they import to the US.

I feel like Debbie Downer here (lol) but thick as molasses doesn't sound like vanilla.

Here's a link from the fda with their cautionary list of which companies to be careful of as they are known to contain coumarin, even if the bottle says "does not contain coumarin." The last update was on March 18.

http://www.fda.gov/ora/fiars/ora_import_ia2807.html


Here's a previous discussion from CC too where someone explained what coumarin could do to those who should steer clear of it:

http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-378483-mexican.html+vanilla

Just a couple of things to chew on. I know everyone will make up their own mind on what's best for them. What doesn't have a warning these days?! But this is one thing I don't want to risk, especially if I'm not the only one eating the cake.

Now I have to really get some vodka and beans so I can finally try this.

p.s. HAPPY EARLY 30th LANI! It really isn't as bad as you think. I've been on the other side of the street for 6 months now.

how much vodka? Does vodka come in the same size? Are there different brands of vodka? Sorry, we do not drink at all, so I do not know anything about alcohol.

If your vanilla is clear - it's imitation. Real vanilla extract is brown (look at the vanilla beans - notice the color?)

Some people don't mind imitation vanilla - I'm one of those folks that prefers to use all natural flavoring whenever possible.

I think vanilla is one of those really important things to me in my baking because unlike so many other things we put in (eggs, flour, sugar, etc) the ONLY reason you're adding it is purely for flavoring ~ so it makes sense to me to use the best I can get, eh?

The Ina Garten recipe calls for steeping 12 beans in a 750 ml bottle of vodka. That's about the size of a standard bottle of wine.

There's a ton of different kinds of vodka, and you can pay any amount. I would recommend using something less expensive since you're not going to be drinking it

Penguin - Just get a 5th of pop off (cheapest you can get) vodka. It will do the trick just fine. As previously stated, you will not be drinking the vodka, so you don't need the expensive, smooth, velvety, sweet .... sorry, getting carried away (love vodka!). Anyways, usually the cheap stuff will be on the bottom shelf. That's all you need. HTH

Does anyone know if it is legal to bring back whole vanilla beans from mexico? I leave for vacation in 4 days!

Aside from the Wilton's clear imitation vanilla I use for my white bc I haven't used anything BUT Mexican vanilla for probably 20 years. My sister in Yuma has kept me supplied all this time, with 2 exceptions when I was visiting and she took me there to get it. One of those times I actually carried a glass gallon jug of vanilla on an airliner, and put it in the overhead storage. Obviously that was yearrrs ago. Until my supply started getting really low, like I was down to my last 32 oz bottle, I have kept my dd and a couple of friends stocked as well. I have never understood how anyone can take a couple of YEARS to use 10 oz of vanilla.

I recently found out that an orchard near me sells Mexican vanilla. Last week I drove over and got an almost 32 oz (940 ML) bottle for $15. I checked and it's not on the list of ones to avoid. I'm happy as a lark to find a local supplier.

I also recently bought a bottle of Laraine Oils Madagasgar Bourbon Vanilla Paste. I used it in a vanilla white cupcakes, and was a little hesitant about using too much. I sure don't mind the tiny specks. The woman I bought it from said I was about to taste vanilla for the first time when I used this stuff. I can't say I was terribly impressed but not sure about the amount I used either. It was the enhanced white cake recipe and I just dropped in a couple teaspoons.

Sometimes I get anxious to get and try something before I have an idea what to do with it. Ã It's half the fun sometimes.

[quote="Ironbaker"]I feel like Debbie Downer here (lol) but thick as molasses doesn't sound like vanilla.


Maybe I exagerated a bit with the "thick as molasses" but I can assure you this dominican vanilla is thick and dark, and the aroma is so strong that when you get near the kitchen cabinet where I keep it, you can smell it.

Mwahahahaha shouldn't tell you about my Goose and tonic then, should I?

<ducks behind the couch>

Thanks for that link, Lani! I think I'll give it a try. Which ones did you order?

*slllllllllllllllllllllap*

What was that dear?? Goose, what? Oh my... what happened to your cheek! It looks all flushed, just on that one side!!!

Thank you! I will have to try making my own vanilla one day!