Making Stuff: Vanilla Extract

This year, I thought it would be nice to make vanilla extract for teachers and staff to take home from the school Teacher Appreciation luncheon.  The rest of the parent board thought it was a good idea too (definitely better than the random tchotchkes handed out in the past). So I went to work using directions from Clotilde at Chocolate & Zucchini, rum from my local Bevmo, Madagascar Vanilla Beans from Penzeys and 4oz amber bottles from Specialty Bottle.

For the labels, I used Avery Printable Sticker Paper and was overjoyed to find a fabulous pre-designed, downloadable, label over at Design Mom (I just had to edit the “8oz” to a “4oz” & resize for our smaller bottle).

With the bottle of homemade vanilla extract, we included a little recipe for vanilla scones and the instructions that the vanilla wouldn’t be ready to use for 8 weeks, but if they encountered a really tough day before then, considering it’s alcohol content, it could be used in an entirely different way. 🙂