Daily Tip: You Are Using The Wrong Vanilla
If you are anything like me and my daughter you love vanilla. Recipe calls for one teaspoon we add 2 but if you add too much you end up with an alcohol flavor. I have always bought a good quality vanilla extract, never imitation and even with those you get the alcohol after taste. A few years ago (ok 10) I found vanilla bean paste and now we can add as much as we want without the alcohol after taste. It is a preference but personally if you are a self proclaimed vanilla addict I think you will find the paste a better option for you.
Difference between Vanilla Extract and Vanilla Paste:
Pure, not imitation, Vanilla Extract is made by macerating vanilla bean pods in mixture of alcohol and water.
Vanilla Bean Paste is made with the vanilla beans by scraping the beans and typically mixed with agave some recipes or companies add water.
With Vanilla Bean Paste you will get the speckles of vanilla which I love probable from my introduction to Breyers vanilla bean ice cream when I was a kid. I love the look of real vanilla beans in my frosting for cupcakes but it is a personal preference.
Vanilla Bean Paste has a richer, fuller taste then Vanilla Extract and no alcohol so if you like to add a little extra you won't get that after taste.
When substituting Pure Vanilla Extract with Vanilla Bean Paste you would use the same proportions.
NEVER buy immitation vanilla and don't be fooled by 'natural' flavors it has a chemical flavor
Read the ingredients, if you are trying to stay away from corn syrup look for a paste that uses pure can sugar or agave.
The best way to control the ingredients in your Vanilla Bean Paste or Extract is to make it yourself. I haven't done this yet but there are several recipes on the internet to choose from that are not complicated.
The Parisian Lifestyle Makeover:
Cook/Bake with love and care you don't have to be a chef or make complicated dishes but you can put more thought into the quality of the ingredients and the presentation of everything you make. It shouldn't be a chore but a labor of love. True Style is about every aspect of your life from the way you dress to the care you take in everything you do.