Vanilla Sugar Recipe
Last summer my daughter married a German and moved to Germany to start her new life. Every time I mail a package or come to visit (just once for her reception) she begs me to send her vanilla extract. I don’t know what she is doing with all the vanilla I have sent her, but apparently she can’t get it in Germany. I was feeling sorry for her until my German girlfriend told me that they don’t have vanilla extract in Germany, they have something much better, vanilla sugar. I brought some home with me to try and now I am hooked. Since the mailing packages only seems to work one way, and I am running out of vanilla sugar, I decided to make my own.
You need:
*Jar with a lid
*Granulated Sugar
*1 or 2 vanilla beans
You can get vanilla beans at most grocery stores. I purchased mine at a store that has a large weigh and measure it yourself spice area. When I got them home, my husband thought I had lost my mind. “Did you realize that each of these beans costs $2.49?” “Yep”, I think to myself, “and I think it’s a steal.”
Measure 2 cups of sugar into your jar. Slice your vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape some of the inside of the bean into your jar with the sugar.
Open the bean a little and then cut the bean into about 3 pieces. Put it into the jar and shake it well. You will see little flecks of vanilla spread throughout your sugar.
Add a cute label.
Store on a dark shelf. Shake it daily for about 2 weeks. It will be ready to sprinkle on any of your favorite foods or to use in recipes. I love it on my oatmeal every morning. You can add more sugar to your jar and keep replenishing your vanilla sugar. The beans will last a long time. It’s so much cheaper than shipping it from Germany.