Good Time to Extract
January 2nd, 2012 | 82 Comments
Hello again, Gorgeous. And, Handsome. Yes you. Happy New Year to you.I hope 2012 is your year, filled with all the things you wish for, whether it be job success, or attainment of personal joy and satisfaction. Or good pastry eatin’. I know I feel hopeful.
My guess is you’re all baked out from the holiday season. Maybe you just want to veg and recover from last night’s self-inflicted fun. I’m with ya.
So I say, all we have to do is prepare for next time. Let’s make some flavors, in the form of extracts.
After having bought one ten-dollar bottle after another of vanilla, I finally decided to grab some vodka and make my own. Not to drink. For the the extracts. Ok, so I had a little nip. Or two. Keeps the ol’ bones warm, yeah?
As long as we have booze, why stop at just vanilla. Let’s go to town and make a bunch. Many recipes use them, so why not have them on hand? Thanks to the powerful preserving qualities of 40 proof, they keep very well.
Today we have vanilla, orange, coconut and mint. There’s really hardly a recipe to speak of. All that’s needed is your main ingredient and the liquor. I like to use vodka because the flavor is so neutral, but feel free to use rum. And do play with other flavors, like lemon, lime, almond, rosemary, cinnamon, ginger, or whatever springs to mind.All the liquor does is suck out the flavor of whatever you put in it. Perfection as a base for co*cktails, too.
Speaking of saving your hard earned moolah, for some reason one sorry vanilla bean purchased in the store will cost you a ransom. I like to buy a fat pack for a fraction of the price, and keep it in the fridge. The beans stay moist and pliable, lasting for weeks. Also, these are the jars I used, perfectly sized for easy storage.
Flavored Extracts: Vanilla, Coconut, Orange, Mint
Even though the rule of thumb is, the longer you leave these alone to extract the flavor, the more potent they become, the exception is fresh herbs. In this case, the mint needs to be removed after about 2 days, or it will go black and bitter. The rest can hang out as they are for a good 3 – 6 months.
3 vanilla beans
2 oranges
1 small bunch mint
1 coconut
1 liter bottle of vodka
4 small jars with tight lids
1. Ready for extraction.
2. Split all the vanilla beans. No need to scrape them.
3. Pick the mint leaves.
4. Now for the dreaded preparation of the coconut. Take a clean nail, or metal skewer, a rather thick one. You can run it over an open flame for a second to disinfect it if it’s stainless steel. Whack it into the eyes of the coconut. Since these spots are pretty soft, it should go in pretty easily.
5. Drain out the lovely coconut water. Save it and drink it after a rough workout. They call it nature’s Gatorade because there’s lots of potassium.
6. Holding the coconut firmly in your hand, give it a few whacks on the center, circling all the way around the equator. It should start to crack open. If you find that it’s too unsteady in your hand, place it on a towel on a sturdy table and have at it that way.
7. Here are my dusty pieces. Take a small paring knife, and run it between the coconut and the shell. Be careful to run the knife AWAY from you, lest you stab yourself first thing in the new year. I don’t wish that for you.
8. Then peel the husky skin off these pieces and run them under cold water to remove all that coconut debris.
And grate on the large side of the grater. We only need about 1/2 cup. The rest is good for munching.
So satisfying to make your own fresh coconut.
9. All the oranges need is a quick peel of the skins.
10. Place each item in its own respective jar and cover with about a cup of vodka. I didn’t even measure. I just divided my bottle evenly among the 4 jars. Make sure they are well submerged. Remove the mint after 2 days. The rest can stay as they are for months to suck up the maximum flavor potency. The vanilla will get quite dark after a while, which is a big plus.
Use them as needed in recipes. When they run out, make some more!
Flavored Extracts: Vanilla, Coconut, Orange, Mint
Even though the rule of thumb is, the longer you leave these alone to extract the flavor, the more potent they become, the exception is fresh herbs. In this case, the mint needs to be removed after about 2 days, or it will go black and bitter. The rest can hang out as they are for a good 3 – 6 months.
3 vanilla beans
2 oranges
1 bunch mint
1 coconut
1 liter bottle of vodka
1. Prepare the vanilla beans: Split all the vanilla beans. No need to scrape them.
2. Prepare the mint: Pick the mint leaves.
3. Now for the dreaded preparation of the coconut: Take a clean nail, or metal skewer, a rather thick one. You can run it over an open flame for a second to disinfect it if it’s stainless steel. Whack it into the eyes of the coconut. Since these spots are pretty soft, it should go in pretty easily.
4. Drain out the lovely coconut water. Save it and drink it after a rough workout. They call it nature’s Gatorade because there’s lots of potassium.
5. Holding the coconut firmly in your hand, give it a few whacks on the center, circling all the way around the equator. It should start to crack open. If you find that it’s too unsteady in your hand, place it on a towel on a sturdy table and have at it that way.
6. Take a small paring knife, and run it between the coconut and the shell. Be careful to run the knife AWAY from you, lest you stab yourself first thing in the new year. I don’t wish that for you.
7. Then peel the husky skin off these pieces and run them under cold water to remove all that coconut debris. And grate on the large side of the grater. We only need about 1/2 cup. The rest is good for munching.
8. Prepare the orange: All the oranges need is a quick peel of the skins.
9. Place each item in its own respective jar and cover with about a cup of vodka. I didn’t even measure. I just divided my bottle evenly among the 4 jars. Make sure they are well submerged. Remove the mint after 2 days. The rest can stay as they are for months to suck up the maximum flavor potency. The vanilla will get quite dark after a while, which is a big plus. Use them as needed in recipes.
When they run out, make some more!
