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Posts Tagged ‘homemade vanilla syrup’

In My Kitchen, January 2012

Posted in In My Kitchen, tagged , , , , , , , , on January 1, 2012| 100 Comments »

Happy New Year!

This year, we’re moving our In My Kitchen posts to the first of each month, to give everyone who wants to join in the entire month to do so.

In my kitchen…

…are imported treats – French chestnuts, Italian mayonnaise and Lyle’s Golden Syrup…

In my kitchen…

…are two new cookbooks that I bought myself for Christmas.  I bought two copies of the Nick Malgieri book – one for Maude and one for myself.  Abby  tempted me with recipes from Bake! all last year, so I finally indulged…

In my kitchen…

…are two bottles of Pete’s vanilla syrup, made with the empty pods leftover from our vanilla sugar…

In my kitchen…

…are a few pickings from the garden.  Our cucumber plants are starting to pick up steam…

In my kitchen…

…is a container of rosemary salt.  It adds a magical zing to roast potatoes…

In my kitchen…

…is a bag of quince green tea and a jar of marinated baby (Persian) figs, a gift from our friends Andrea and Chris…

In my kitchen…

…is a jar of Kampot pepper, which Pete’s sister Katey brought back for me from Cambodia.  It smells amazing!

. . . . .

Tell me, what’s happening in your kitchen this month?

If you’d like to do an In My Kitchen post on your own blog, please feel free  to use this format, and to leave a comment here linking back to your post.  We’d love to see what’s happening in your kitchen this month!

…..

In My Kitchen posts, January 2012

Misk @ Misk Cooks

M & E @ Chabichou & Sheep

Helen @ Casa Costello

Sally @ My Custard Pie

David @ Cookbooks Anonymous

Claire @ Claire K Creations

Choclette @ Chocolate Log Blog

Jane @ The Shady Baker

Sue @ Sous Chef

Linda Maree @ My Garden Feast

Heidi @ Steps on the Journey

Shelley @ All Litten Up

Amanda @ Lambs’ Ears and Honey

Caryn @ Crumbly Plum

Mandy @ The Complete Cookbook

Cindy @ The Only Cin

Tandy @ Lavender and Lime

Lizzy @ Bizzy Lizzy’s Good Things

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Vanilla Syrup

Posted in Recipes, tagged , on June 24, 2009| 21 Comments »

vanilla syrup 006

Here is the recipe for Pete’s fantastic vanilla syrup.  It works brilliantly in milkshakes, for poaching fruit, or as a drizzle over oat porridge or icecream.  Because he used our homemade extract, the syrup has a clean, almost crisp, vanilla flavour and a flotilla of  small black seeds.  It’s an easy recipe to prepare, providing you remembered to make extract three months before, but tricky to get just right.  Pete has a particularly fine palate when it comes to syrups and jams – he always manages to produce a perfect balance of flavours and textures.

  • 2 litres filtered water
  • 1 kg white sugar (possibly more)
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • 1 or more fresh vanilla pods
  • 2 Tbsp homemade vanilla extract (plus a couple of vanilla pods that were soaking in the vodka)

1. Scrape out the fresh vanilla pod and add the seeds, plus the pod into a large pot.  Add the water, sugar, soaked vanilla pods and brown sugar and heat gently until the solution boils and the sugars dissolve.

2. Add the vanilla extract and bring back to the boil briefly.  Allow to cool a little, then check that the syrup has thickened slightly (otherwise you’ll just end up with sugary water).  The thickness of the syrup is related to the amount of sugar – if you’d like greater viscosity, simply add more sugar until it reaches a consistency you’re happy with.  Taste for vanilla – you want to add as much vanilla extract as you can whilst still keeping the syrup in balance. This recipe is all about tasting as you go to ensure the flavour is smooth and well-rounded.

3. Ladle the syrup into sterilised bottles and seal well. Place the used vanilla pods in a small jar and top up with a little syrup.  Store this in the fridge and use it as a “starter” for your next batch, by putting it into the pot with the other ingredients.  The starter can be used several times before the macerated beans lose their oomph.

vanilla syrup 002

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