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| clockise: lavender, hazelnut, chocolate mint, vanilla, cinnamon |
Last week I was sitting at Trivia Night and my friend Jimmy did a dangerous thing: he mentioned that a person could make her own cooking extracts.
It had honestly not occurred to me to make my own! And after searching in vain for lychee extract a few weeks ago I couldn’t let go of the idea. I talked it over with Butchie and we decided that instead of our usual baking night, we’d spend a night making the ingredients to bake with! (For anyone with a religious reason for not cooking with alcohol I advise using imitation extracts: hopefully you already knew your average vanilla flavoring is 35% alcohol and lemon flavoring close to 60%. In fact, I believe there is more alcohol in rum flavoring than there is in actual rum!!!)
After spending the better part of an afternoon researching what alcohol I would want to use, I stumbled upon a web post about using Everclear straight grain alcohol only to learn that I can’t buy Everclear in DC! Or Virginia Maryland
Despite the copious amount of alcohol in the kitchen we were actually less clumsy than usual. No flying spoons, no mishaps with a kitchen knife. Stephen did an excellent job at preparing the mint, and Butchie didn’t even burn herself roasting the hazelnuts! …But I guess since we weren’t drinking any of the alcohol that doesn’t make this much of an accomplishment. [There are many reasons for our sobriety. But for the record, we do not advise that a person drink Everclear straight. At all. Ever. –B.]
Butchie and I followed the same process for each of our extracts, except that she made hers with Smirnoff vodka [didn’t manage to get up to Maryland
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| clockwise: cassia cinnamon shards, vanilla extract, hazelnuts, vanilla beans, hazelnut nut extract, chocolate mint extract, culinary lavender buds |
Cinnamon Extract
Ready In: 2 weeks
2 1/2 tablespoon cassia cinnamon shards
4 oz. Everclear or Vodka
Combine ingredients in a jar. Shake daily for two weeks.
Hazelnut Extract
Ready In: 1 month
1/4 Cup Hazelnuts, skinless, toasted
1/2 Cup Everclear
1/2 Cup Everclear
Pour hazelnuts into a skillet to toast. This should take about 5-7 minutes on a medium heat. If any hazelnuts looked burned do not use them.
Once cooled, chop the nuts coarsely.
Place chopped hazelnuts and alcohol in a jar and close tightly. Allow at least one month before using.
Lavender Extract
Ready In: 1 week
1 tablespoon lavender buds
4 oz Vodka
Combine the ingredients in a jar and twist the lid on, shake, and place out of direct sunlight.
Shake daily for at least one week.
Strain through a sieve lined with a coffee filter. Repeat as necessary.
Vanilla Extract
Ready In: 2 months
3 vanilla beans
8 oz. Vodka or Bourbon
Use kitchen scissors or a sharp paring knife to cut lengthwise down each vanilla bean, splitting them in half, leaving an inch at the end connected.
Put vanilla beans in a glass jar or bottle with a tight fitting lid Cover completely with the alcohol.
Give the bottle a good shake every once in a while. Store in a dark, cool place for 2 months or longer.
