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06/28/2018 12:01 AMThere are certain reasons I go to BJ’s. I like the strip steaks, which I buy as three-in-a-pack, then freeze them singly and, when I have carnivore friends for dinner, I grill steak (not the carnivore friends). I buy V-8 juice because I can go through a 46-ounce can in less than a week. And, of course, sugar, King Arthur all-purpose flour, and pure vanilla extract in a big bottle. I use a lot of vanilla. The last time I needed the latter, there was none to be had, just the fake stuff, which is simply awful. The next time I was there, the real extract was back. It was $27 per 12-ounce bottle, way more than any bottle of wine I have in my wine racks. Evidently a cyclone hit Madagascar, where most vanilla beans (which is from the orchid family) come from and $27 is considered cheap, compared to the teeny bottle you get at the supermarket. So, save your pennies and never use the artificial stuff. The love you create in your own kitchen is worth vanilla’s price. Honestly. And it lasts for almost forever.
—Lee White