I opened my mailbox and smelled vanilla. Hoorah…our new vanilla bean order has arrived!
It’s amazing to me that these vanilla beans are such good quality that I could smell the vanilla beans through the thick packaging. I can still smell the vanilla scent on my fingers, JUST from opening the package.
Here they are…my lovely vanilla beans from OliveNation:
I guess you know what’s going on in my house right now. We’re starting another batch of Homemade Vanilla Extract. We’ve also got another big batch that’s almost ready to bottle up for sale! I’ll keep you posted.
So, since the vanilla beans have arrived, you know what else we had to purchase, right?
I found it rather amusing that today at lunch time I said, “Here, let me move all this vodka so you can set the table.” It was a proud parenting moment.
This is the perfect time to get a batch of homemade vanilla extract going so that it will be ready to give as Christmas gifts! My favorite source for high quality and economically priced vanilla beans is OliveNation. You’ll receive free shipping on the vanilla bean order, plus us the coupon code hhm2011 for a 10% discount!!!!
So funny! I always wonder what the people at the store are thinking of me as I tote my Vodka and four sons out of the store with me. . .Somehow I want to hang a sign on myself that says “It’s for Vanilla!”
ME too!!! Especially since this last time I bought TWO GALLONS at once. Good grief. :)
love the smell of vanilla!
My vanilla beans arrived last week & my mailbox smelled good, too:) You should have seen my hubby’s face that afternoon when he came home & I told him I needed him to go to the liquor store & buy me a gallon of vodka. He thought I had gone off the deep end! Lol. He said he went in & told the lady working he needed a gallon’s worth of the cheapest vodka she had. She looked at him like he was crazy when he said his wife needed it for ‘cooking’. But, my beautiful, fragrant beans are hanging out in their vodka bath just waiting for Christmas time:)
Laura,
How many beans do I need to order to make a gallon, 1/2 pound, 1lb? I’ve never done this before but would love to make for Christmas gifts! Thanks.
It’s all explained in this post: https://www.heavenlyhomemakers.com/making-homemade-vanilla-extract-aka-why-laura-bought-a-gallon-of-vodka
You’ll get about 120 beans in one pound, so to make 1 gallon, I usually order the One pound of beans. This gives me some left over to make an extra 1/2 gallon or so!
I am about to make vanilla for the first time and I am very excited. I ordered my beans yesterday. Thank you for the discount Laura. This past Sunday I took my husband to Wal-mart with me to get the vodka. We couldn’t find it on the shelf so we found an employee to ask if they had it and we just didn’t see it. The man we found to ask looked to be in his late 60’s and informed us that Wal-mart does not sell hard liquor. The expression on his face when was asked was priceless. I think he thought we were very bad people to be wanting Vodka. As we walked away I felt I had to tell him I was going to be making homemade vanilla. As we drove to the “hard” liquor store, my husband and I had a good laugh over the man’s reaction to our question.
Laura, I’ve been trying to work up my nerve to buy vodka. We only have two liquor stores in our town and as I’ve never been in a liquor store, I just know I’ll see someone I know and then I’ll be mortified trying to explain lol! I could drive 45 minutes to the next liquor town but don’t want to waste the gas lol! I need to make up my mind so I can have some for christmas:)
Ah, but remember—if you see someone you know at the liquor store they are at the liquor store too! Could be an interesting situation!
If you know someone who shops at the liquor store, maybe you could beg a favor of them, yes?? =) I’m not going there either!
My husband is a preacher! We have been talking about starting a batch of vanilla, but seriously I just KNOW that we will see someone we know and then *everyone* will be talking about how we drink Vodka LOL!
I figured others would think I was a drinker, too. I took the edge off of it by blogging http://www.expressionsofperceptions.com/2011/04/28/leaving-my-kids-at-home-with-my-husband-while-i-hit-the-liquor-store-clearance-sale/ and I’m fine with it, but I come from a family of drinkers so I’m used to people mistakenly thinking that I’d drink vodka.
Maybe you could buy some when you’re in another town sometime.
Also, vodka is an excellent natural cleaner/surface disinfectant.
Anyway, if Jesus can make wine, I don’t see why we can’t make vanilla extract!
I’m so glad I’m not the only one with liquor buying fear lol! My church is
ultra conservative and I can just hear the gossip as they talk about it! I
think blogging about it or putting it on facebook will save me much embarrassment!
Yeah, if you write that you’ve pondered the idea, maybe you can wait to see their reactions before actually going to the store. Kinda feel them out a little bit. Hope that helps!
So, Laura, I’m not sure I’ve asked you before… Have you ever seen vanilla in a vegetable glycerin base instead of alcohol? I think I used to buy some from Frontier… I would much rather buy that at the store! =) (not to mention, it actually tastes good by itself!)
I think Olive Nation actually carries something like that too, but I haven’t looked into it very thoroughly.
This question is unrelated to vanilla. Do you have any experience using tea tree oil for skin treatment? It seems be a “cure-all” if you believe everything you read online. In my family we have 1 person with some warts on his hand, 1 teen with acne, and 1 person with athlete’s foot. Tea tree oil is touted to cure all of these. Any experience?
No, I’ve never tried it. It’s been recommended to my by a friend to help our son’s eczema, but at the time she recommended it, I was pretty nervous to try anything else new. Since it’s a natural essential oil, I would imagine it would be a safe thing to try for your kids.
But no, I don’t have any experience myself.
I heard that on the Doctor’s today laura. That you can use Tea tree on eczema.
AND.. for sinus congestion… boil some water.. add 2-3 drops of Tea tree, and lean over it (with a towel over your head) and breath it in. It’s suppose to relieve the congestion in 5-10 mins.
How long of a shelf life does the vanilla have?
Years and years! :)
Interesting timing… I just ordered my vanilla beans today!
I just made vanilla extract,too. I even blogged about it using the title:
“Leaving My Kids at Home with My Husband While I Hit the Liquor Store Clearance Sale”
http://www.expressionsofperceptions.com/2011/04/28/leaving-my-kids-at-home-with-my-husband-while-i-hit-the-liquor-store-clearance-sale/
Yeah, proud monent ;)
do you every “top off” your vanilla once it’s about 1/4 used? i think i read somewhere that you can do this, while the beans are still in the container, and the quality will remain the same. have you heard of that before or done it?
Thanks for the laugh. I had to chuckle out loud!
Try going through the checkout with Everclear! My bil likes to tell stories to his mother how I get to drinking with all of these kids to take care of. Wouldn’t she have a fit if she saw me then!
I have leftover vanilla beans in one of my storage drawers, and every time I open it I get a strong whiff of vanilla :)
Mine will be ready in July!! I can’t wait. The beans from Olive Nation came so quickly and I got the discount you offered. They were VERY fresh. Now to order some of those lovely bottles!
Yeah!!! I just order with the discount. Can hardly wait! I have been looking for YEARS for a good deal on vanilla beans. I just could never bring myself to pay $2-4 per bean that I had seen before!
I only wish that you posted this earlier about Olive Nation…I just purchased 25 vanilla beans via another website but didn’t get the 10% discount or free shipping…now I know!!! I should make my own vanilla extract since I bake so much! Thanks for the great tip!!! Any tips on buying gluten free flours in bulk online?
I really want to do this sometime soon! I know you’ve said you buy soy sauce. What else do you buy from Olive Nation?
I was able to get 100% pure vanilla from the Amish for $1.69 per 8 oz bottle. I was so excited!
how much do you sell your bottled vanilla for?
The first time I went to buy my vodka, I took my recipe with me – it just made me fell better! I just ordered some more vanilla beans. Thanks for the discount code!