Making homemade vanilla

Way back in December 2022, I decided to start 2 batches of vanilla with the intention of gifting them in December 2023.

Yes, you read that right…I let them “steep” in a dark cool closet for a whole year!

Totally worth it.

This is such an easy gift to make. Really, all you need is time.

Here’s what I did:

  1. Using quality vanilla beans, slice them open the long way to expose the gooey vanilla bean insides (now give them a sniff – yum, right?)
  2. Stuff 20 slit vanilla beans into each bottle of your chosen alcohol. (I used a 1.75L bottle of Vodka and a 1.75L bottle of Captain Morgan’s Spiced Rum for this project.)
  3. Give them a shake, label each bottle with the date and place in a dark cool place.
  4. About every week, or whenever you want to visit your steeping creation, turn the bottles upside down and right side up again and put them back in the closet. This agitation is about all you need to do for the next year.
  5. Once the time is up, find some cute bottles and pour your vanilla goodness in the bottles. The bottles I used came from Ikea
  6. I went the extra mile and made some cute labels for my bottles.
  7. Gift as you wish!