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One-liter homemade vanilla extract for Full GAPS at its thirty-day first-use stage with whole and split beans in amber liquid
Ebonie Garnica

1-Liter Homemade Vanilla Extract for Full GAPS

A lighter Full GAPS homemade vanilla extract with ten to twelve long beans in one liter of plain grape vodka. Leave about half whole, split the rest, and begin using after thirty days.
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Steeping 30 days
Total Time 30 days
Servings: 1 batch
Course: Condiment
Cuisine: GAPS
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 10-12 vanilla beans about seven inches long, preferably organic
  • 1 liter plain grape vodka at least 80 proof / 40% ABV, unflavored, unsweetened, no added color, glycerin, or other additives

Equipment

  • Glass bottle or jar with room for one liter, beans, and headroom, or two 750 ml glass jars
  • Kitchen scissors or small knife
  • Stable board if using a knife
  • Liter liquid measure

Method
 

  1. Leave about half the selected beans whole and split the remaining pods lengthwise with kitchen scissors or a small knife. Keep the fine caviar inside the opened pods; do not scrape it out.
    A vanilla bean split for Full GAPS homemade extract with sticky fine seed paste and residue on the supported used knife
  2. Put the whole and split beans in clean glass containers with room for the measured spirit and some headroom. Arrange the whole pods with their curved ends accessible. The photographed twelve-bean base batch uses two 750 ml jars, each with three whole pods and three split pods.
  3. Add the spirit amount selected in the ingredient list, dividing it evenly if using several jars. The photographed base batch has five hundred milliliters in each jar. Wet and immerse the pods and close the lids tightly.
    Fresh one-liter Full GAPS vanilla extract divided between two glass jars with whole and split beans immersed in clear grape vodka
  4. Keep the closed container in a dark cupboard and shake vigorously every few days. The opened pods gradually release fine vanilla seed material into the spirit.
  5. Begin using this lighter preparation after about thirty days. Leave the beans immersed in the spirit afterward so the flavor continues developing. Measure the amount specified in the recipe you are making and close the jar again.

Notes

Beans: One batch uses 10–12 long beans and one liter of spirit. The photographs show twelve beans: six whole and six split. At 2×, use 20–24 beans and two liters, leave about half whole, split the rest, and use sufficient glass capacity. The thirty-day first-use point stays the same.
Method: Leave the caviar in the opened pods. This lighter method does not scrape every bean. Whole pods become plumper as they soak.
Timing: Thirty days is the first-use point. Leave the beans in the spirit so the flavor continues developing. The card lists the aging period; hands-on preparation time depends on the pods and tools.
GAPS: Homemade vanilla without added sugar or non-GAPS additives is a Full GAPS flavoring ingredient measured into other recipes.
Storage: Keep tightly closed in a dark cupboard with the beans immersed. Shake vigorously every few days and close the lid after measuring.
Other Strengths: See the classic eight-week vanilla and double-fold vanilla for their different bean ratios and methods.

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