"Brave" Birthday Party

My daughter recently had a birthday and months ago she decided she wanted a Brave party. This was her first official party where she got to invite friends and, honestly, I was a tad nervous. I shouldn't have been, but I wondered how I could incorporate food and fun games into the theme she had chosen AND how to keep a handful of preschoolers entertained. 

A few weeks before her birthday, K decided that she wanted a Minnie Mouse birthday and then she decided on an Ariel birthday and then it was back to Brave. I could have taken the 2 former themes and had a handful of easy and festive ideas, but I'm glad she chose Brave because it was a fun and challenging to plan and it became a creative outlet for me. This also gave me the perfect excuse to attempt my first decorative cake. I was so excited to do something that would create memories for our daughter.

She LOVES anything princessy and I wanted to make sure to incorporated a bunch of her favorite things into the party: makeup, nail polish, sparkles, rainbows, pizza and cupcakes. Thanks to Pinterest and talking through some ideas with friends, we created this event for our daughter.

This is an overview of the party and I'll post specific recipes in another post. I also wanted to give a special thanks to Tarren Jessop who came as Princess Merida. This was her first birthday party and she was AWESOME! She was so great with the kids and her Scottish accent totally rocked. The girls couldn't believe that Princess Merida had come all the way to attend the party. They were all pretty stoked! If any of my Northern Utah readers/followers need and awesome Princess to come to your daughter's party, let me know and I'll give you her contact info. She was so great!

I also wanted to give thanks Alisha and Steve from Embre Photography for capturing the night for us. It seems like when you put an event together you don't have enough hands to accomplish everything, especially taking pictures, so I'm so grateful for them. I loved how the pictures turned out. This will definitely be a fun memory and I'm glad they captured it for us. Embre Photography also has a Facebook page, so check them out.

Here's the party in a Reader's Digest version:

The decor: Was really simple and I tried to tie the forest into the decorations since the movie takes place in the Scottish Highlands. We cut up some logs and covered them in parchment paper and served the food on them. I also gathered sticks from our backyard and arranged them in a glass vase and used it as a center piece. I also took blue tissue paper and made "wisps" for the table. The main decor was less than $1. I saw the idea here. I also bought the Disney Deluxe Figurine Pack so that I could use Merida on the birthday cake and I used the rest of the figurines on the food table.

The food: We served Target Practice pizza, Bullseye cakes, Arrow cupcakes, and Bear claws. I totally loved how easy it was to make the cupcake toppers. That site is so cute and filled with lots of ideas. I also made a Brave-themed cake. I used these cute food tags from the site, Printabelle, that was part of the free (and super cute) printable Brave party pack. Check out that site because there are lots of themed (and free) printables for birthdays, holidays and other celebrations. I also wanted to serve Scottish Sweet buns seen here and here, but I just didn't have time. They would have made the party extra festive, especially since the triplets in the movie LOVED sweet buns.

The activity: We had a girl come dressed as Princess Merida to the party. She read the girls a book, played games outside with them, did a Princess Makeover on each girl and played at the party with each of the girls. I couldn't believe how much the girls loved it! And anything that involves sparkles and makeup is sure to please little girls. Other ideas that could have been fun that I toyed with was: pin-the-tail-on Angus, a pinata in the shape of a horse or arrow, and outdoor games. There are so many avenues you could take with this theme.

The party favor: I went to Zurchers and got the Brave party bags. I filled them with a candy necklace, a Ring Pop, a party noise maker and Brave Stickers (also from Zurchers).

The "Thank You": Each Princess that attended the party will receive a card with a picture of them with Merida. What little girl doesn't want to remember meeting a REAL princess? :)

Now here is the extended party version with lots of fun pictures. I can't believe how well this all came together. I hoped it would be a magical time for the girls.

We had all the girls come in Princess dresses.

Princess Merida came to meet all of the princesses. They were so happy and excited!

She read them a story. K's cousin even made sure she was paying attention.

We did Princess makeup and hair sparkles.

We painted fingernails.

And toenails.

 Princess Merida even let K paint her nails. K loved that!

 All of the Princesses got their pictures taken with Merida after their Princess makeovers.

The Princesses couldn't resist playing in the leaves with Merida.

We had yummy food and decided to do dinner since we were having the party in the evening. We also wanted to have desserts along with the cake.

Target Practice pizza.

Bear Claws.

Bulls-eye cakes.

Arrow cupcakes.

And her birthday cake. This was my first decorative cake. I did a vanilla bean sponge cake with Swiss Buttercream frosting and dark chocolate ganache. It was tasty!

The kids were SO excited when we cut the cake. K loves rainbows, so this was another little surprise for her and I wanted to incorporate it into the party. Note to self: If you do a rainbow cake for a kid's party, either make 2 of them or make rainbow cupcakes. The arrow cupcakes were SO not cool after we cut into the cake. :)

The Birthday girl couldn't wait to open presents. She got spoiled rotten! She got a bunch of new dolls and "animally friends" (aka stuffed animals), a new outfit and a ton of princess toys and makeup. She was so happy that Merida helped her open gifts. She loved celebrating with her friends and family.

She couldn't stop hugging her new stuffed friends.

We sang "Happy Birthday" and she couldn't even wait until the song ended to blow out candles.

We gave out little party bags for each of the Princesses that had little favors in them: noise maker, candy ring and necklace and Brave stickers. 

Princess Belle having some fun outside.

K's little Sis holding down the fort inside.

Cinderella even had a chance to take a ride on Angus. :)

We had so much fun seeing the joy and fun that the kids experienced it made all of the hard work worth it. I can't wait to plan her next birthday. I have to give a HUGE thanks to my amazing husband who was my right-hand man for the whole shindig. He is the most awesome person in the world and I'm glad we get to party together. He is so supportive in all of my baking and party adventures. And the most willing taste-tester. Gosh, I love him! My parents were also so great to come a few hours before the party to help organize and set up everything. They are always there to help and my Mama always says, "Many hands make light work." My good friend, Missy, was also great to come over and help me with the cake. I needed some serious moral support to pull that off. She always has fantastic, creative ideas. Party planning is SO much easier with awesome people to help me. I definitely could not have pulled this off solo. :)

I'm so glad I came from a family that enjoys celebrating, making memories and creating traditions. Life is so good. I hope this inspires you to find the joy in celebration and finding little ways to become more festive in creating memories with your loved ones. 

Oatmeal Scotchies

Oatmeal Scotchies
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I love having friends and family who share my passion for food. I love emails and late night chats about the latest recipes we've tried and giving each other pointers. My cousin, Merissa, is quite domestic and I have fun keeping up with all of the food she cooks and bakes. She gave me this recipe to try out and it was practically perfect. She told me that this recipe happened to be a "accidental magic." You know those moments where you are in the midst of making something and you don't have enough of whatever the recipe calls for? Then you just start throwing in a little of this and that in of whatever you have on-hand? Happens to me all of the time. That's one of the fun things about baking and cooking is that a recipe is just more of an outline and not a set of rigid rules; you get to create and make the recipe your very own. That's why I love baking and cooking so much. The butterscotch chips became the "accidental magic" in this recipe.

These aren't your "cakey" oatmeal cookies, but rather are chewy and so buttery. Most oatmeal cookies have  just chocolate chips, but these have a mixture of semi-sweet and butterscotch. The butterscotch chips are amazing! It takes oatmeal cookies to new heights. I also love the incorporation of pecans with the chocolate. These have so much chocolaty chunk goodness that it's practically sinful. I also added a little bit of cinnamon. It's just enough to add that finishing touch.

Here's what you need:
-1 C butter, softened
-1 C brown sugar
-1/2 C white sugar
-2 eggs
-2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
-1 1/4 C all-purpose flour *High-altitude bakers: add 1/3 C extra flour
-1/2 tsp. salt
-3/4 tsp. baking soda
-3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
-3 C quick oats
-1/2 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips
-3/4 C butterscotch chips
-1 C pecans, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. *Sea-level bakers preheat to 325 degrees

2. In a large mixing bowl cream butter and sugars together with an electric mixer. Add eggs and vanilla and beat mix until well-incorporated. Add flour, salt, baking soda and cinnamon. Mix until incorporated. Add the oats, baking chips and pecans and stir by hand until all incorporated.

3. Drop mixture by the spoonfuls on a parchment-lined baking sheet or lightly greased baking sheet.

Chocolaty Chunk Goodness
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4. Bake for 11-12 minutes. Edges will be slightly brown and top will still look under baked. Remove from oven and cool on baking sheet for 5-7 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Cute gifting idea.
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These will keep in a cookie jar or an air-tight container for a week or so. I also like making a double batch and either freezing the baked cookies or the frozen scoops of dough for a quick treat when company comes over.

To make from frozen cookies: scoop dough out on to a baking sheet as if you were going to bake them, but put them in the freezer instead. Once scoops of dough are frozen, transfer them to a gallon Ziploc bag. I like to write the name of the cookie and the baking temperature and time amount right on the front. Then all you have to do is pop them onto a tray and bake. I like to put the frozen cookie dough on to the baking sheet and let them sit in the oven while it preheats. Bake about 2 minutes extra from the recommended baking time.

You can also bake the entire batch of cookies and once the cookies are completely cooled, you can put them in an airtight, freezer-safe container with waxed paper separating the layers. Or I have placed 2 cookies in a sandwich bag and put several of those bags into a Ziploc bag for freezing. Any way works well, it's just personal preference.



Enjoy and Happy Baking!


Here's the printable recipe.

Rum Cake

Linda and Ester
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My family and I recently took a trip to Florida to visit some dear friends. During our trip our friends graciously shared favorite recipes and gave us a taste of the types of food they enjoy in their region. The wanted our visit to be a culinary treat, which it was. They introduced us to a shrimp boil, New Orlean's food with a Mardi Gras dinner party (King Cake and all), good fried chicken and my favorite: rum cake. I had never tried rum cake before. When I tried it I wondered where it had been all of my baking life. Rum cake can be kind of involved, but this recipe is SO easy. Every time I make this cake it reminds of that awesome trip. That trip was so special and we are so blessed to have such amazing friends! The Mardi Gras party was so fun with beads and all. Ester was such a sweet lady who taught me all about " Loo-siana" food and how to make the best brown roux. It was great to meet her and chat about food. What an experience to remember! Thanks to Linda for the amazing cake recipe. I wish that I could take credit for it. :)

Mardi Gras decor

Linda tells me that deep down inside I'm really a Southern girl that got geographically relocated. I love Southern food, the hospitality and the people. Florida will always feel like my second home. And can you believe the view? My. Favorite.

Florida Beach

This cake is SO good. It's dense, moist, and the brown sugar gives it a delicious caramel taste. If you are worried about baking with alcohol, you can boil the rum for the cake until you smell the alcohol burn off (3-5 minutes) and then fill up the measuring cup with water to get to 1/2 C. The glaze is also boiled so the alcohol will burn off and just the rum flavor remains. The pecans are also a nice compliment to the rum and brown sugar flavor. I also love that the top of the bundt cake gets caramelized. We all fight over who gets to eat the top. I hope you enjoy this cake. It's a crowd-pleaser and I get so many requests to make this cake and it's usually the first dessert to get gobbled up. I always buy 3 or 4 cake mixes and boxes of pudding at a time so that if I need a quick dessert for company or a pot-luck I have all the ingredients on-hand.

Here's what you need:

Cake:

-(1) Duncan Hines Butter Golden cake mix (not the standard yellow cake mix)

-(1) 3.4 oz. instant vanilla pudding (not prepared)

-1/2 C. oil (I used canola, but you could also use veggie or melted coconut oil)

-1/2 C rum (I used Bacardi because it was on sale. Just get regular, not spiced)

-1/2 C water

-3 eggs

-1 C. pecans, coarsely chopped

*High altitude bakers: add 1/3 C flour to mixture.

Glaze:

-1 C brown sugar
-1/2 C butter

-1/2 C rum

-1/4 C water

-1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Garnish:
-1/2 pint whipping cream

-3 TBS powdered sugar

-1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

-sprinkle of cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees (350 degrees if you are using a dark-colored pan) or 325 degrees for sea-level bakers. Grease and flour a bundt pan.

2. Combine all ingredients except for nuts in a medium mixing bowl and mix with an electric mixer until well incorporated. Pour batter into bundt pan.

3. Sprinkle the top with pecans and lightly push the pecans into the batter.

4. Bake about 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Sea-level bakers: bake 50-55 minutes at 325 degrees.

5. While cake is baking make the glaze. Combine sugar, butter, rum, water and vanilla in a medium skillet (gives more surface area for alcohol evaporation). Boil for 4-5 minutes or until you smell the alcohol burn off.

6. After cake is baked, remove from oven and allow it to stand in the pan for 5 minutes. Poke holes in the cake with a knife and then pour glaze over top of cake. Allow to stand at least 15-20 minutes (or longer if you wish) and loosen the sides of cake from the pan with a knife. Turn the cake out on to your serving platter.

7. Pour whipping cream into a medium mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Stir in vanilla and powdered sugar.

Cut cake and serve with fresh whipped cream and sprinkle cream lightly with ground cinnamon.

This was my first cake. The whipped cream idea came when I made my second cake.
It was eaten too quickly before I could take a picture of it. :)

Enjoy and Happy Baking!


Here's the printable recipe.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Making cookies with my Mom is a very fond memory from my childhood. We had so much fun baking together and these cookies just remind me of home. A couple of months ago my girls and I spent the weekend at my parent's house. There is just something so comforting about going me. The last time we spent the weekend we had a PJ party and my Mom made these chocolate chip cookies with my oldest daughter. It was so sweet to watch them bake together the way my Mom baked with me. My daughter loves being in the kitchen and I hope she will remember these times with her Gran. My youngest was also trying to get in on the baking fun. She was a good helper loading the dishes. :)

Not all chocolate cookies are created equal and this recipe my all-time favorite. The cookies are chewy, full of chocolate, buttery and they aren't flat. Seriously, I hate flat cookies. The butter is what makes these cookies amazing, so make sure you don't substitute it with margarine (BTW "margarine" is a swear word in my kitchen..). Also, these don't bake very long and when you take them out they will look under-cooked and slightly doughy, but after they are cooled they will be perfectly chewy. I hope you love these cookies.

This dough also makes a perfect base for other cookies. I love using this recipe and using white chocolate chips and pecans. You can also substitute milk chocolate chips for any other favorite baking chip that you like or have on-hand. I also like using the mini mint chocolate chips from Ghirardelli and adding a few drops of green food coloring to the dough to make green cookies for St. Patty's Day.

Here's what you need:

-1 C butter (2 sticks), room temperature

-1 C brown sugar
-3/4 C white sugar
-2 eggs (If doubling the batch use 3 eggs)
-1 tsp. pure vanilla extract (I usually double this)
-3 C all-purpose flour
-3/4 tsp. baking soda

-3/4 tsp. salt
-(1) 12 oz. bag milk chocolate chips
-1 C nuts, optional (I like walnut, pecans or chopped almonds)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream sugars, butter, eggs and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Add dry ingredients and mix until well incorporated. Add chocolate chips and nuts and stir to combine.

2. Take 2 teaspoons and spoon cookies onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Mine usually bake 11-12 minutes. The edges will start to look golden and the cookie will look like it's not baked enough. This is how it's suppose to look. **If baking from frozen dough, let the cookies thaw in the oven while it's preheating and then bake 2 minutes longer.

3. Take them out (no longer than 12 minutes) and let them rest on the cookie sheet for 5-8 minutes. Transfer to a cookie rack and allow to cool (if you can resist warm cookies).

These will keep in a cookie jar or an air-tight container for a week or so. Not that they have ever lasted that long at my house. I also like making a double batch and either freezing the baked cookies or the frozen scoops of dough for a quick treat when company comes over.

To make from frozen cookies: scoop dough out on to a baking sheet as if you were going to bake them, but put them in the freezer instead. Once scoops of dough are frozen, transfer them to a gallon Ziploc bag. I like to write the name of the cookie and the baking temperature and time amount right on the front. Then all you have to do is pop them onto a tray and bake.

You can also bake the entire batch of cookies and once the cookies are completely cooled, you can put them in an airtight, freezer-safe container with waxed paper separating the layers. Or I have placed 2 cookies in a sandwich bag and put several of those bags into a Ziploc bag for freezing. Any way works well, it's just personal preference.

Enjoy and happy baking!

Here's the printable recipe.

Biscoff Cookie Truffles

Biscoff Cookie Truffles
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Okay, so it's no secret that I love Biscoff Spread. Seriously, that stuff is amazing and addictive. I try and find reasons to use it when I bake because I completely love it. I recently won a case of (8) jars for free during a promotion on the Biscoff Facebook page, so it was fun to think of ways to incorporate it into some of my recipes. I'm usually very conservative in using it because it is kind of expensive, but I love this stuff. But I figured I could use a couple jars just to play around with. Check out some of the other recipes I've used with Biscoff Spread: Biscoff Bars and Biscoff Spiced Cream Frosting for the Butterscotch Spice Cupcakes.

Have you ever tried Oreo cookie truffles? They are one of my favorites. They were my inspiration behind this recipe. What could be better than Biscoff cookies mixed with Biscoff Spread and a little cream cheese and vanilla? Heaven.

I made these for a family party and they were a big hit. The texture is a little more oily than when you make Oreo truffles, so I discovered if you let the mixture sit an hour or so, it gets a little soft. Then make sure they are really chilled before dipping and it works much better. I also dipped these with white chocolate, but they would also taste great dipped in chocolate. I also love the combination of Biscoff and butterscotch, so I drizzled melted butterscotch chips on the top. You can customize it with whatever flavors you prefer.

Here's what you need:
Makes about 25 truffles

- (1) 8.8 oz pkg of Biscoff cookies,
-5 oz cream cheese, room temp
-1/2 C Biscoff Spread
-1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
-pinch of salt

Dipping:
-7 oz. white almond bark (found in the baking isle of most grocery stores)
-3 oz butterscotch chips, separated
- 1 tsp. coconut oil, melted

1. Take Biscoff cookies and put them in a food processor and pulse until they are a fine crumb. Put crumbs in a medium mixing bowl with cream cheese, spread, vanilla extract and a pinch of salt. Stir to combine and mix  until thoroughly incorporated.

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2. Take a tablespoon scoop and roll into balls. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Place in the refrigerator or freezer for 30-45 minutes until completely chilled.

Biscoff Truffles
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3. While truffles are chilling, melt almond bark either in a chocolate melter, double boiler or for a few minutes in the microwave on 50% power, stirring every 15-30 seconds. You may need some extra coconut oil to thin it out if it's too thick for dipping. I prefer using the chocolate melters.

Mmmm. Chocolate.
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4. Once truffles are chilled, take a dipping utensil and dip truffles and place back on parchment paper. Continue dipping each truffle.

5. Once all truffles are dipped, place back in refrigerator and melt the remaining 2 oz. of butterscotch chips. Use some coconut oil to thin out chocolate so it's easier to drizzle. Drizzle butterscotch chocolate on top of each truffle. Chill truffles until ready to serve. You can also store them at room temperature in an airtight container.

Biscoffy Goodness
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Yummy cookie center
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Enjoy and Happy Baking!


Here's the printable recipe.

Oatmeal Cake with Coconut Frosting

Oatmeal Cake with Coconut Frosting
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We have a tradition in our family that the birthday person gets to choose their favorite dinner and favorite birthday cake for me to make. This year my husband chose my oatmeal cake with coconut frosting. This is a recipe that I grew up with that is one of my all-time favorites. It totally reminds me of home. I remember having it for my Dad's birthday. He's a sucker for this cake.

This cake is awesome. It's moist, dense, and reminds me of why I love brown sugar. It has a slightly caramel taste and the frosting totally compliments it. The frosting I could just eat by the spoonful. The vanilla extract makes the frosting rock and this cake isn't complete without it. I almost never make this frosting to go on German chocolate cake. It's always reserved for oatmeal cake. When I was little it was kinda tradition that we'd eat the leftover cake for breakfast the next morning. That's probably not the most healthful, but it's made with oatmeal so it completely justifies having seconds, right?

When I make this cake for a special occasion I like to do the double-layer round, but if you are in a hurry or just want a cake for a simple dessert, then a 9x13 works well. Sometimes we just make this cake for a treat and I almost always do it in a 9x13. But because it was my husband's birthday, I did the double-layer. The cake actually comes together in about an hour and a half for the double-layer, but a 9x13 takes less than an hour, so you can plan accordingly. I always make my frosting while the cake bakes and it saves a lot of time. If you do the double layer, you will want each cake to cool almost completely so that the layers don't break. I usually frost mine when it's slightly warm when you touch it because I'm a little impatient. The frosting is okay to be slightly warm also when you frost it. If doing it in a 9x13 pan, I usually let the cake cool for about 5 minutes and then I put the frosting on it and then let it cool completely before serving. This cake also tastes amazing after it sits a day. The frosting makes it even more moist.

Here's what you need:

-1 1/2 C oatmeal (I use rolled oats, but you can use quick oats if that's what you have)

-1 1/2 C boiling water

-1/2 C (one stick) butter 

-1 C brown sugar

-1 C white sugar 

-2 eggs

-1 tsp. pure vanilla extract (sometimes I double this)

-1 1/2 C all-purpose flour

-1/2 tsp. salt

-1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

Frosting (do a double batch for a double-layer cake):

-2/3 C evaporated milk

-2/3 C brown sugar

-2 egg yolks

-1/4 C real butter

-1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

-1 1/2 C sweetened flaked coconut

-1/2 C toasted pecans, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine oatmeal and boiling water in a large mixing bowl and let it stand for 5 minutes. Add the butter, white and brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, salt and baking soda and mix with an electric mixer. Mix for about a minute until all ingredients are well incorporated. Add the flour and mix just until incorporated.

2. Grease and flour (2) 9 in. round pans. I usually grease with butter-flavored Crisco. I also trace the bottom of the pan on a piece of waxed paper and cut out a circle to put in the pan. This really helps the cake not to stick. Separate your batter evenly into both pans. If using a 9x13 pan, grease and flour and pour all batter into the pan.

3. Bake at 375 degrees for about 30-35 minutes. Do the toothpick test after 30 minutes and check. (Mine usually bakes for 33-35 minutes). Rotate your cake halfway through baking to ensure that it gets baked evenly. (You should do this for all baked goods.)

4. While cake is baking, make the frosting. Combine milk, sugar, egg yolks, and butter in a medium sauce pan. Stir over medium-high heat until it comes to a boil. Boil for a minute or 2 until the frosting begins to thicken. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and coconut. Set aside.

5. For a double-layer cake: Remove pans from oven and allow to sit for 3-5 minutes. Take a knife and run it around the cake pans. Take a cloth and flip the cake onto your hand holding the cloth to remove from pan. It should come out easily. Remove the waxed paper from the bottom and transfer the cake to a wire rack for cooling. Repeat for the other cake. For a 9x13 cake: Remove pan from oven and allow to sit 3-5 minutes and then add frosting. Sprinkle with pecans

6. Double-layer cake: Once cakes are cooled completely, get your serving platter or cake stand. Take 3 strips of waxed paper and form a triangle on the platter. Place bottom layer on top of waxed paper strips. If the top isn't even, trim the top with a knife to make it even.

Place a big dollop of frosting on the first layer. Spread to the edges and then garnish with 1/2 C of toasted pecans. Add the next cake layer on top. Add a dollop of frosting and spread to edges. Continue frosting the cake all the way around to completely cover cake.

Once frosted sprinkle with remaining toasted pecans. Remove strips of waxed paper.

Let the cake cool completely and then serve. Enjoy and resist the temptation to eat the cake entirely to yourself. :)

Enjoy and Happy Baking!


Here's the printable recipe.

Homemade Vanilla Extract

Anyone that knows me knows that I love love LOVE vanilla. I love using vanilla extract and vanilla beans in baking. I think it adds the most wonderful flavor to cookies, cakes, frostings, puddings, etc. It is a sin to bake with margarine just as it is a sin to bake with imitation vanilla. Not only does imitation vanilla have man-made chemicals in it, but it tastes chemically, too. Homemade extract tastes amazing and it's not too expensive to make yourself. It also makes for cute gifts for birthdays, Christmas, etc. I think homemade vanilla also looks awesome, too. There's just something domestic looking about a cute jar with vanilla beans.

So here's a little bit about vanilla beans. Vanilla beans come in grades. Grade B and C are usually ones that are stiff, cracked or split. Grade A beans have a high moisture content and are greater than 6 inches in length. Grade A (also known as gourmet beans) also have the best vanilla flavor because of the moisture content and natural oils. It was hard to find grade A beans for a decent price, but then I found this awesome company, Beanilla. They sell many varities of  gourmet vanilla beans. I have purchased from them several times and their customer service is impeccable. They are such a great company.

The variety that I use the most in baking is Madagascar beans because they have the most versatile flavor. They taste rich and creamy with a slight buttery undertone. Once you get more accustomed to using vanilla beans and making extracts, you can move into the other varieties like Indonesian, Mexican and Tahitian beans. I also use vodka in my extract because it doesn't add any additional flavors. You can also use rum or brandy or any other 35% + proof alcohol. Rum is also nice as an extract base as it adds a yummy warmth to certain recipes. If you don't want to make your own extract, Costco's Kirkland brand of pure vanilla extract is delicious and it's reasonably priced compared to grocery stores. Just promise that you'll stop using imitation vanilla if it's in your kitchen. :)

I also got the cute glass jars from Beanilla and also from The Container Store. I love making my extract into 4 oz. bottles because they are the perfect size for gifting. You can also make one large bottle of extract, just make sure you use a 5:1 (5 beans to 1 C liquid) bean-to-alcohol ratio for optimal flavor and strength.

Here's what you need:
-8 oz vodka (I used Skyy because it was on sale)
-5 Madagascar vanilla beans, whole
-(2) 4 oz. glass bottle with a cork

1. Take a sharp knife and cut your vanilla bean in half length-wise leaving about 1/2 inch intact at the top. You can slice it completely in the middle or just break through the top layer. Do NOT scrape out the beans.

2. Place 2 1/2 vanilla beans in each glass jar and cover with vodka.


Extract just after pouring
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Left: Extract just poured, Right: Extract after 1 hr.
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3. Store in a cool dark place for 6-8 weeks. The longer it sits, the more intense the flavor. About every 2 weeks give each bottle a gentle shake.



Steeped for over 12 weeks. Yum!
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 4. Once vanilla is done steeping, use it as you normally would use extract in baking.The longer it steeps, the richer the color and flavor. Once your bottle is near empty, refill again with vodka and steep again for at least 6-8 weeks.  You can do this several times. You get get lots of uses out of the vanilla beans.

Add a cute tag and some bakers' twine and you have a darling homemade gift!

Homemade vanilla gifts.
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Once you feel that the vanilla isn't as strong then replace the vanilla beans. You can take the old vanilla beans, dry them off and add to a jar of sugar to make vanilla sugar.

Enjoy and Happy Baking!

Here's the printable recipe.