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06/20/2019 12:01 AMOver the past six months, I have been peering at the outside of a quart-sized blue Mason jar. The jar has 20 fresh vanilla beans in it, and the jar is filled with vodka. As much as I wanted to open it up and smell it, I did not.
But last week I did. It smells like pure vanilla extract. I am not much of a drinker, but when I poured the vodka into the jar, in January, it smelled like vodka. Today that liquid smells like vanilla. It is not as brown as a bottle of McCormick pure vanilla extract, but the aroma is gorgeous. Last night I whipped some heavy cream and added a half teaspoon of sugar and the same amount of the from-scratch vanilla. It was heavenly. I will never have to buy store-bought vanilla again. Periodically I might add a few more beans and some vodka. But I told my daughter that I added the vanilla to my will. Don’t throw away that blue Mason jar, Darcy