Hello, boys and girls! It’s time for another riveting read from The Deglutenizer! This week, we’re making a simple ingredient that’ll fancy up any sweet treat. Two ingredients and a mason jar will have all your friends asking for your secret to homemade whipped cream, crème brûlée, and ice cream. That’s right, we’re making vanilla sugar.
“Vanilla sugar?” you ask.
“Yes, vanilla sugar,” I respond.
First of all, it takes at least a week to make before you can use it because it’s basically an infusion process, which requires time. So before I start sharing recipes that actually call for vanilla sugar, I want to make sure my readers already have a batch on hand, rather than having to wait for their sugar to be ready when they find a recipe they want to make. Also, I’ve been in a pie mood lately, and the best thing on pie is homemade whipped cream. And the best way to show off that your whipped cream is homemade is to have those little black specks of real vanilla bean mixed in. And the easiest way to do that is to make vanilla sugar with real vanilla bean.
You: “Okay, so my whipped cream will look fancy. Why else should I bother infusing vanilla into sugar?”
Well, you can also use it in any flavored custard, whether you’re making lemon curd or a cream filling or even a basic chocolate pudding, and you won’t be adding any extra liquid like when you use vanilla extract. Also, sugar is cheap, so you can really stretch your vanilla by adding it to sugar.
Are we good now? Yes? Awesome. So here’s how to make your very own vanilla sugar at home.
Ingredients:
1 ½-2 c. sugar
1 whole vanilla bean
Directions:
- Measure sugar into pint-sized jar, leaving room to mix ingredients.
- Slice bean open lengthwise. Using spine of knife, scrape seed paste off of cut edge, flattening bean skin against cutting board.
- Add seed paste to sugar, close jar, and shake vigorously to combine.
- Let sit 1 week before use, shaking occasionally to distribute vanilla bean specks as they continue to dry.
- Use in place of vanilla extract and equal amount of sugar in recipes.
There you go, vanilla sugar made perfectly at home. You could use any kind of sugar, though larger crystals are better for topping desserts, and smaller for measuring into baked goods. Madagascar vanilla is the most common in groceries, but Mexican vanilla is the way to go if you’re looking for the good stuff.
You could also make any number of citrus sugars using the dried zests of lemons, limes, and/or oranges, or a floral sugar with dried edible flowers, and I’m sure I don’t have to tell you how to make cinnamon sugar. Please leave your thoughts in a comment below, or get in touch with me directly by filling out the form on the contact page.
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