Vanilla Extract

Makes:  one liter

Ingredients: 

10 vanilla beans of your choice, split lengthwise
1 liter of quality vodka

Instructions:

Split vanilla beans lengthwise be careful not to loose any of the seeds.  Open bottle of vodka and insert one at a time.  Close lid tightly and invert bottle gently 2 times.  Store in a dark place for a minimum of 3 weeks, inverting gently 2 times, once a week.  When desired steeping is reached, decant into light proof bottles (amber glass works great), straining for small particulate.  Vanilla beans can be reused by adding more vodka.  Be sure to cover beans completely in liquid.

Note:  You will notice that this extract is not dark in color as many commercial ones are, as they have added caramel for color.