Night Elf Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 I have vanilla extract. Is extract the only choice at the regular grocery store? We once looked for vanilla bean paste and our store didn't carry it. I like vanilla milk but it has a weird after taste. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoobie Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and a farmers' market near me carry the paste, but I've never seen it in regular grocery stores. Amazon, Williams-Sonoma, and King Arthur carry it online. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted July 12, 2013 Author Share Posted July 12, 2013 Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and a farmers' market near me carry the paste, but I've never seen it in regular grocery stores. Amazon, Williams-Sonoma, and King Arthur carry it online. I needed it for cupcakes but we found online a substitution amount using vanilla extract. Right now I'm looking for something I can mix it with milk to make a drink. I've been using a fairly cheap extract. I was wondering if there was something better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 If you want to mix it with milk to make a drink you might need to add a bit of sugar. Vanilla extract alone is not sweet or 'vanilla-y' tasting until it meets sugar. Sugar helps the vanilla flavor 'bloom', and the sugar in milk is not enough. Now, I have made delicious vanilla sugar for coffee and milk. I just put a vanilla bean into 2 cups sugar and let it sit for a couple weeks. You can add more sugar as you go. I've had a jar going for years and I've never replaced my vanilla bean. It is still going strong. You could also try the same thing with a sugar syrup. Make a simple syrup, allow to cool and add a vanilla bean. I bet you could reuse the bean many times. You could also look in the store for coffee syrup. I know my grocery store carries those flavoured coffee syrups, sometimes used for 'italian soda'. I know they make a vanilla one. I usually prefer caramel or almond, but you could try the vanilla in milk to see if it works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OrganicAnn Posted July 13, 2013 Share Posted July 13, 2013 In most stores they have real vanilla extract and artifical vanilla extract. Try the real vanilla. It costs about 3x as much. You can buy vanilla beans and make your own. I think buying vanilla beans on line in bulk is the way to go. People do this for Christmas presents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted July 13, 2013 Share Posted July 13, 2013 Natural food stores carry whole vanilla beans. Have you played with those? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plink Posted July 13, 2013 Share Posted July 13, 2013 Cheap imitation vanilla is made from wood, and tastes like it. Nasty stuff. Try real vanilla (my favorite is from Mexico - different countries have very different flavors), and as RedSquirrel said, make sure to mix it with sugar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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