How to make vanilla sugar? Someone will ask: why? It's sold in every rundown store. I do not argue. Only in a bag of sugar soaked in an artificial substitute for natural vanilla.

Let's make real vanilla sugar on our own, without the use of chemistry and surrogates. In addition, if you ever try such a thing, I assure you, you will no longer look in the direction of those bags. This magical fragrance can be called divine. Try adding this sugar to your morning coffee. Here then also we will look at your skepticism.

What do you need?

We need tools:

• sharp thin knife
• absolutely clean board
• a spoon
• glass bowl
• coffee grinder or blender
• clean, dry glass jar with a volume of at least 1 liter with an airtight lid

From the ingredients you will need:

• real vanilla pod
• 700 g of the simplest white sugar

If you don’t need to choose sweets (sugar is the same everywhere), then you need to be able to choose the right real vanilla pod. What you should pay attention to:

1. Length. It should be at least 20 cm. Ideally, 24-26 cm.
2. Color. Dark, brown, almost black are signs of a good quality product. Light brown tones are an indicator of poor spice.
3. There must be a hook at the end.
4. Feel the vanilla. It should be flexible, as if oily. A dry, rigid pod indicates either a fake or improper storage.
5. A whitish coating of crystals on the surface is welcome. This suggests that the pods were properly dried and stored under proper conditions.

You can not bother, but take what is on sale. But you are doing it for yourself! So look for good stuff.

Procedure

First you need to get the seeds. With a sharp thin knife, cut the pod on only one side. Inside there should be an oily black mass of a grainy consistency. This is our prey. Carefully transfer it to a glass bowl, add 100 g of sugar. Now grind the resulting mixture until smooth with a spoon.

In principle, vanilla sugar is already ready for use the next day. But this volume will end very quickly, and we need a lot. Therefore, we continue to make a long-playing blank. Carefully cut the pod into pieces about 3-5 cm in size. Place one piece in a coffee grinder or blender, add 50-80 g of sugar. Grind as finely as possible. Now you need to mix the resulting mass with the rest of the sugar. Including the one that was previously ground with seeds.

Pour the mixture into the prepared glass jar. We put the pieces of chopped vanilla pod there. Close the container tightly with an airtight lid, put it in a dark, warm, dry place. For example, in a kitchen cabinet. We leave for 7 days. Shake the jar vigorously once a day without opening.

After this time, we open the jar and ... we fall into ecstasy from the magnificent aroma of vanilla! Sugar is ready to use.

Important! Vanilla is not washed! This procedure will remove most of the crystals from the surface of the pod. The aroma will be weaker.

1. You can not cut the pods into pieces at all, but put them in a jar as a whole. If only the height of the can was enough. The sugar will still absorb the flavor. But it is better to take out the seeds in any case. They can be used to make sauces or baked goods.
2. By the way, you can not choose vanilla pods by smell when buying. They have a very interesting amber that not everyone likes. Only cut, it gives the very flavor that has already become a talk of the town.
3. And remember: a quality real vanilla pod is not cheap. This is a very rare and expensive spice that is cooked and dried for a long time before being sold.
4. In the future, after using the vanilla mixture, you just have to pour new granulated sugar into the jar and shake the jar periodically. Such a preparation will provide you with fragrant sweetness for a long time, because a natural vanilla pod gives off a smell for several years.
5. Sometimes with an ordinary knife it is very problematic to remove all the seeds from the pod, they are very small. In this case, you can use a special butter knife. It has a rounded tip, which will allow you to clean absolutely all the seeds to the last without any problems.
6. Another method involves using pure sugar and a regular spoon. You just need to pour the crystals into the pod and rub them with cutlery. Then the sugar is cleaned with the same spoon. Together with him, all the seeds are perfectly removed.
7. If you are unlucky enough to find good quality natural vanilla, then buy what is on sale. Even improperly stored pods flavor sugar quite well. Of course, the smell will be a little weaker. But, if up to this point you have only sniffed artificial vanillin from bags, then even in this case you will feel a noticeable difference.
8. All tools must be absolutely dry and clean, free from foreign odors. Otherwise, sugar will absorb this excess, and you will eat buns with vanilla and sausage or cheese.
9. Some sources recommend using the following proportions: for 500 g of sugar, take 5 natural vanilla pods. We believe that this is an unacceptable overspending of the most valuable spice. This amount of flavoring is enough to prepare 2.5 kg of natural vanilla sugar at the same time! Plus, then a new portion will still be added to the jar.
10. By the way, this spice has a stunning aroma and, alas, a bitter taste. Therefore, it is not worth overdoing it. The sugar will smell divine, but you don't have to use it. Bitterness will kill all your efforts.

How to make vanilla sugar? Now you know what is needed for this, and you can often delight your household with wonderful pastries, the smell of which they will never forget.

Video: how to make vanilla sugar

vanilla sugar, most often found on the shelves of our stores, is a fragrant white powder, which consists of crystalline vanillin and granulated sugar, mixed in certain proportions. The ratio of components is specified by GOST and remains unchanged for a long time. More expensive versions of this supplement use a powder made from vanilla beans. The color of such a product should be white with black patches.

One smallest bag of vanilla sugar, which weighs four grams, which is equal to one teaspoon without a slide, is enough to flavor one kilogram of the finished product, although some housewives prefer to add a double rate to enhance the flavor. Currently, on the shelves you can see vanilla sugar in various packaging. Packages come in weights from four grams to a kilogram. The price of a small sachet of aromatic additives is low.

It smells like vanilla at home. It is impossible to imagine the smell of her or other pastries, as well as various sweet dishes without this aroma.

Vanilla itself is very capricious to grow, because the plants need special conditions and artificial pollination. That is why culinary specialists were forced to look for a replacement for this fragrant substance. She became a crystalline powder with the desired flavor. This artificial substitute has become widely used among the population, especially in home cooking, due to the high cost of natural vanilla.

The chemically produced product is very bitter and highly concentrated, therefore, for the convenience of housewives, it is mixed with granulated sugar.

Application

The use of vanilla sugar is very wide. Most often it is used in cooking as a flavoring for various dishes. An amazing and unique taste and aroma with the addition of this product is acquired by:

• milk porridge;
• charlottes;
• cocoa and hot chocolate;
• mousses and other delicate desserts;
• homemade ice cream;
• milkshakes;
• cupcakes;
• biscuits;
• shortcakes and gingerbread;
• delicious pastries.

This product is also added to flavor glazes, creams and impregnations, which are subsequently covered or layered with homemade delicacies.

Culinary experts consider the combination of this fragrant granulated sugar with cream to be the best compositions: butter creams and sweets are so tasty that it is obviously impossible to break away from the confectionery decorated with them. Even an ordinary, simple in all respects and preparation cream of whipped butter with condensed milk, with the addition of a bag or two of vanilla sugar, will turn out perfect. This homemade product will be difficult to distinguish from the cream that is layered on factory cakes.

By mixing fragrant sugar with cottage cheese, you can get not only everyone's favorite cottage cheese mass with vanilla, but also make delicious casseroles, cottage cheese cake, cheesecakes, cookies or lazy dumplings from it. Also, this odorous mass can be wrapped in pancakes or used as a filler for baked sweet pies, cheesecakes. And you can, without hesitation, bake ordinary deep-fried donuts. The smell that vanilla sugar gives to cottage cheese will hover around your house for a long time and bring joyful mood to all household members.

And meringue, and soufflé with gelatin, and buns, and biscuits with the addition of vanilla sugar in them are simply amazing.

And if you mix the dried zest of a lemon or orange with a fragrant additive, and then add it to muffins, you will not find a greater pleasure.

When to add?

When to add vanilla sugar? This question worries all young chefs.

Most often, this aromatic component is placed in the dough along with baking powder. When added to milk jelly, vanilla sugar is mixed with starch, and then, having dissolved the resulting mixture in a small amount of boiled milk or water, the mass is poured into the main volume of the product.

When preparing muffins in the sponge method, experienced confectioners recommend adding this component not to the dough itself, but to the main amount of flour, fearing that the dough may take too long to come up and turn sour.

When making sweet omelettes or biscuits, vanilla sugar is mixed with salt and then with the main amount of sugar. After that, the mass is whipped together with proteins.

In order to get a beautiful crust on rich oven baking, it is recommended to mix a small amount of sugar and a tablespoon of high-fat butter with yolks, and then flavor this mass with a pinch of fragrant sugar or vanilla extract. Believe me, the beauty of baking will exceed all your expectations, and the appetizing smell will be heard even by neighbors!

What can be replaced?

What can I substitute for vanilla sugar? The answer to this question is simple. Vanillin or vanilla extract, or in extreme cases, vanilla flavoring. The latter, by the way, performs best in liquid compositions, but in baking it does not at all justify the hopes of the housewives placed on it, because it cannot withstand high temperatures. But, in order not to risk it, it is best to make vanilla sugar with your own hands.

Making vanilla sugar at home

Making vanilla sugar at home will not take much of your time, but it will definitely solve the problem of not having it in your kitchen. The composition of the product is very simple. In addition, the vanilla sugar obtained in this way will be cheaper than the product packaged in industrial conditions. To make good quality vanilla sugar at home, you will need a scale, granulated sugar, and vanilla or a vanilla pod. Choose the last one of sufficient length, because it is the long pods that are considered the most fragrant.

So, measure out a kilogram of granulated sugar and pour it into a deep dry bowl. Add vanilla bean to it, crushed in a mortar to a powder. In the case of using a natural component, you can, without hesitation, double the rate: the product will only be more aromatic from this.

If natural vanilla is not available to you, you can replace it with crystal vanilla. Its proportion to a kilogram of sugar is 1:10, that is, 100 grams. You will end up with about 275 doses of flavored sugar. Do not forget that, like any product that can dissolve in a liquid, vanilla sugar must be protected from moisture. Store it in a tightly sealed glass jar and always scoop it out with a clean, dry spoon.

Which is better: vanilla sugar or vanillin?

Which is better: vanilla sugar or vanillin? This question can often be seen on the forums of amateur confectioners. So, I would like to note that the use of one of the components always excludes the use of the other. Comparative characteristics of the products are shown in the table below:

Benefit and harm

The benefits and harms of vanilla sugar are completely due to the composition of the product. The use of vanilla sugar is not recommended for people suffering from allergies or sugar intolerance. The use of products with vanilla sugar is not recommended for children under the age of three, due to the immaturity of their digestive system. This applies not only to sugar with artificial vanillin, but also to flavoring, which includes a natural ingredient.

It is worth refusing to use vanilla sugar in the diet for people suffering from low blood pressure, because the product can cause dizziness due to vasodilation.

It is noted that the aroma of vanilla has a beneficial effect on the nervous system: it calms and gives strength, being the best antidepressant. And he is also able to restore its balance, pacify anger, remove feelings of anxiety, relieve irritation and relax. In addition, vanilla is an aphrodisiac and antioxidant..

Scientists have proven that moderate consumption of fragrant sugar:

• improves intestinal motility;
• prevents obesity, accelerating metabolic processes;
• neutralizes alcohol in the blood;
• increases the pain threshold;
• reduces the risk of developing cancer cells;
• reduces the risk of diabetes.

But for expectant mothers and lactating women, it is better to limit the consumption of vanilla and its derivatives in order to avoid the development of powerful reactions due to the unstable hormonal background of the body during this period.

The use of vanilla sugar in the diet should be approached carefully, not exceeding the recommended proportions, and then you can get delicious confectionery products with a wonderful aroma that will not only give you gastronomic pleasure, but also charge you with a great mood for the whole day.

Vanilla sugar is used in the preparation of various sweets. It is easy to use, durable, does not lose its taste under the influence of high temperature and gives the baking a unique flavor. To save time, a modern housewife should always have a bag of vanilla sugar on hand. Let's find out how it is prepared and what can replace vanilla sugar.

Most wanted spice

Vanilla sugar is a product that is a mixture of granulated sugar and vanilla powder. Vanilla is considered one of the most sought-after spicy substances and belongs to the category of expensive spices. It turns out that vanilla is a sprawling long vine. Vanilla powder is obtained from its fruits. But extracting vanilla is not so easy: an exotic plant is very capricious in its care. The biggest difficulty in growing a "fragrant" vine is the pollination of its flowers. To get vanilla, you need to go to Madagascar, Mexico, Central America, China or Indonesia. It is there that this exotic plant grows.

Vanillin types

Often housewives try to replace vanilla sugar with vanilla. However, in the food industry, in order to save money, a spicy product is often replaced by a cheaper analogue. It's called vanillin. In terms of aromatic properties, it practically does not differ from vanilla. But the taste of baking, in which real vanilla sticks are added, is much higher than that of buns with the addition of vanillin. In addition to the food industry, vanilla is widely used in the production of perfumes, cosmetics and many medicines. Vanillin is used specifically in cooking. There are 3 types: powder, liquid, crystalline. The first kind, vanilla powder, is used to make vanilla sugar; it is also used in the manufacture of chocolate. Liquid vanillin is widely used in the confectionery industry: it is added to sweets. The third type of spicy product is used in baking.

Vanillin in cooking

For the preparation of bakery products, vanillin or sugar based on it is used more often. A sachet of vanilla sugar usually contains 2 g of the product. It should be remembered that in large volumes the spicy substance gives the dish bitterness. 4-9 grams of vanillin are usually added to 1 kg of dough. In dairy products, to improve their taste, add 0.5-2 grams of vanilla sugar. Spices are added to dishes and pastries at the very end of their preparation so that the aroma does not disappear too quickly. Vanilla powder is used not only to enhance flavor, but also to soften unwanted flavors in dishes. Vanillin dissolves perfectly in hot water, ether, alcohol, and it gives soft taste and incomparable aroma to drinks.

How is vanilla sugar made?

You can easily make vanilla sugar at home. The recipe for its preparation is as follows. You need to take 2 vanilla pods and 1 kg of granulated sugar. It is better to buy long vanilla pods, as they are considered the most valuable. Sugar must be poured into a deep container, and vanilla cut into small pieces. The two ingredients should be thoroughly mixed and tightly closed with a lid. The container must be placed in a cool dark place (you can in a closet). It is necessary to “infuse” sugar for at least 3 weeks, after which it can be used as needed.

Vanilla sugar recipe: method number 2

If there is no bag of vanilla sugar at home, and there is no time to cook it, you can use its substitutes. So, how to replace vanilla sugar? For these purposes, ordinary vanillin is usually used. A pinch of vanilla can replace 2 small spoons of vanilla sugar. But in order not to always look for the answer to the question of what can replace vanilla sugar, it is better to cook it yourself and use it as needed in the future. In the 1st recipe, sugar and vanilla must be infused for 3-4 weeks. The next method does not require such time costs.

You need to purchase a long natural vanilla pod, a bag of powdered sugar and granulated sugar (1 kg). Remove all the seeds from the vanilla pod and crush them thoroughly. After that, you need to add powdered sugar to them and mix everything well. The resulting mixture must be poured into granulated sugar and put a vanilla pod there. The container should be well closed and stored in a dark place for 4 days, after which you can enjoy fragrant vanilla sugar.

What can replace vanilla sugar?

Baking with the addition of vanillin always turns out fragrant. But often the spicy substance is not at hand. What can replace vanilla sugar? For these purposes, you can use vanilla essence: 12.5 grams replaces 20 grams of vanilla sugar. You can add a unique flavor to pastries by adding 1 small spoonful of vanilla extract to the dough. But more often, housewives use ordinary vanillin for cooking. Some people add cinnamon or cardamom instead of vanilla sugar. But in this case, the resulting dish will not please the owners of the house with an incomparable vanilla flavor.

What is the benefit of vanilla sugar?

Many people say that vanilla sugar is vanillin. But this is wrong. Vanilla only forms the basis of sugar and thanks to this it has a lot of useful properties. First of all, vanilla aroma has a calming effect on the human body. The spicy smell can help get rid of many diseases. Vanillin helps with insomnia, convulsions, allergies, arthritis, fever, hysteria. Vanilla aroma tames anger, reduces feelings of anxiety, irritation, helps to relax. Vanilla stimulates the body and uplifts the mood. It is also an antioxidant, antidepressant, helps to activate brain activity and normalize digestion. Few people know that vanilla is also an aphrodisiac. From all of the above, it can be seen that it not only gives an incomparable flavor to dishes, but also benefits a person. But in order for the taste of the cooked food to be at a high level, it is better to use natural vanilla and sugar based on it.

"Vanilla Muffins"

This delicious fragrant dessert can be prepared in 20 minutes. To prepare it, you need to take:

• 125 gr. butter;
• 3 eggs;
• 300 gr. flour;
• 1.5 small spoons of baking powder;
• a pinch of salt;
• 75 ml of milk.

First you need to mix sugar and butter. The oil needs to be at room temperature. Next add the eggs and mix well. After that, add flour, baking powder, vanilla sugar, salt to the mixture and mix it all. Lastly, add milk. You should have a thick, sticky dough. We prepare baking dishes and put paper baskets there. Fill each basket halfway with dough. Next, put any filling (chocolate, pieces of fruit or berries) and fill it with dough. Bake Vanilla Muffins at 175°C. When the pastry is browned, it can be removed from the oven. "Vanilla muffins" are elastic, and the filling goes well with the dough. The pastries are really fragrant and very tasty. And if you put Vanilla Muffins in an airtight container and leave them overnight, then the next day they will be even tastier. Vanilla dessert is great for a family holiday or a children's party.

Vanilla pods are the fruits of a perennial plant from the Orchid family. It is used as a spice mainly in confectionery and as a flavoring agent in the perfume industry. The name vanilla comes from the Spanish word vainilla, which translates as "pod". Vanilla fruits are pods.

Vanilla grows in tropical and subtropical climates. The main suppliers of natural vanilla are Madagascar, China and Indonesia. Vanilla gained wide popularity in Europe from the beginning of the 19th century, when it was imported to European countries from Mexico.

Vanilla has a very pleasant aroma, which is inherent only in the fruit of this plant, but the taste of natural vanilla is bitter, so it is added to confectionery products in small quantities. Too much vanilla in a dish can add a bitter taste to it.

Vanilla Pod Information:

Ingredients of natural vanilla:

Vanilla pods contain:

• Carbohydrates - 12.5%;
• Proteins - 1.2%;
• Fat - 0.1%.

The chemical composition of natural vanilla fruits includes such mineral elements as calcium, zinc, potassium, magnesium, copper, iron, manganese, sodium and phosphorus.

Vanilla fruits contain vitamins such as B1, B2, B5, B6, B9 and PP.

Vanillin, gluco-vanillin, essential oils and cinnamon ether give vanilla flavor to vanilla pods. In addition, the fruits of natural vanilla contain tannins.

The calorie content of vanilla pods is only 287 kcal per 100 grams of product.

How to use vanilla beans in baking:

To make vanilla-flavored dough, not the pod itself is used, but the seeds inside it. Therefore, you first need to extract the seeds from the vanilla pod as follows:

1. Just before adding the vanilla seeds to the batter, place the vanilla bean on a clean and dry board with the folded end of the vanilla bean pointing up.
2. Hold the vanilla pod in one hand and take a small knife in the other hand.
3. Carefully cut the vanilla pod lengthwise to the center, so that its edges can be pulled apart, but not into 2 parts. Don't hurt your hands! If you want to add half a vanilla pod to the dish, then it must be cut lengthwise to half its length.
4. Open the edges of the pod with your hands.
5. Gently scrape the seeds from the vanilla pod into the dough, following the proportions indicated in the recipe. If you add more vanilla than required, the dish may start to taste bitter.

How to make vanilla sugar from a natural vanilla pod:

1. Take a small clean and dry, hermetically sealed container.
2. Slice the vanilla pod lengthwise as above and empty the contents into a container.
3. Place the vanilla bean in a bowl.
4. Pour 40 grams of sugar or better powdered sugar into a container, it will be saturated with vanilla aroma faster and more intensively.
5. Seal tightly and leave for one week.

How to make vanilla extract from vanilla beans:

1. Take a small clean, dry and glass half-liter, hermetically sealed container.
2. Place 3 vanilla pods in a bowl.
3. Pour half a liter of good vodka or rum into the container.
4. Close hermetically and leave to infuse in a dark, cool place for 3 months when using vodka and for 1 month when using rum. Shake the container periodically.
5. Add as an ingredient to dishes in the proportions indicated in the recipes.

The longer the vanilla extract is infused, the more intense its flavor and aroma will be.

How to properly store vanilla beans:

In order for vanilla pods to retain their vanilla flavor for a long time - up to 5 years - they must be stored in a hermetically sealed glass jar in a dark and cool place.

How much vanilla lines weigh:

One vanilla pod weighs about 3 grams.

How to replace natural vanilla pods:

If the recipe calls for a vanilla pod as an ingredient, but you don't have it on hand, you can substitute it:

1. Vanilla sugar. In proportion, 1 vanilla pod is equal to 15 grams of vanilla sugar.
2. Vanillin. In proportion, 1 vanilla pod is equal to 1-2 grams of vanillin.
3. Vanilla extract. In proportion, 1 vanilla pod is equal to 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Vanilla pod production technology:

The technological scheme for the production of vanilla pods is quite complicated, which is why natural vanilla is so expensive. The production line includes 7 stages:

1. At the first stage, vanilla fruits are harvested from trees.
2. Fruits are immersed in hot water heated to 85 degrees Celsius in order to wash and disinfect them.
3. The vanilla fruits are then immersed in water heated to 60 degrees Celsius and left to ferment for a week. After that, vanilla fruits acquire their unique aroma and recognizable brown color.
4. Next, the vanilla is dried in the shade in the open air for several months.
5. Once the vanilla pods have a slight white coating, they are ready to use.
6. Vanilla is placed in a container and sent to the warehouse.
7. At the warehouse, natural vanilla is packed in packages and sent for sale to retail outlets and various industries.

Benefits of natural vanilla pods:

The benefits of natural vanilla lies in the beneficial effect of the essential oils contained in it on the human body. Vanilla helps restore the functioning of the nervous system, get rid of anxiety, irritability and stress.

It improves appetite, normalizes the digestive system and improves metabolic processes in the human body.

Natural vanilla is also useful for the work of the muscular system. It helps to get rid of muscle cramps.

In general, vanilla aromas calm a person, improve mood, create a feeling of peace and comfort.

Harm of natural vanilla pods:

Vanilla can be dangerous and contraindicated for people with its individual intolerance and allergy sufferers. The essential oils contained in it can cause an allergic reaction. Therefore, people with allergies should consult a doctor before consuming vanilla.

Pregnant women should use vanilla with extreme caution. Regarding its use, they should consult their doctor.

For everyone else, vanilla can only benefit, when consumed in moderation, as an ingredient in proven dishes.

Alexander Gushchin

I can't vouch for the taste, but it will be hot :)

Content

This product is found in many recipes for sweet pastries and even in some sauces. Vanilla sugar is a food additive that gives the finished dish a pleasant aroma. It is always added quite a bit. It differs from ordinary sugar only in that the product is insisted on vanilla beans. A cheaper version of the spice is prepared on the basis of synthetic vanillin. Replacing granulated sugar with vanilla will not work. If you add a lot of the latter, the dish will be very bitter.

What is vanilla sugar made from?

The basis of a pleasant aroma and specific taste is an extract of the vanilla plant, which produces pod fruits. Based on these pods, fragrant sugar is produced. You can purchase a ready-made product or make it yourself at home. The last option is not much inferior to the factory one. The only possible difference is the flavor.

In the food industry

There are 2 ways to create a spice:

• From vanilla extract. This is a natural product that has a positive effect on the body. It improves digestion, tones, relieves pain during menstruation, eliminates muscle cramps, and relaxes the nervous system.
• Made from synthetic vanillin. The product turns out to be cheap, often no less fragrant than natural, but completely useless, and sometimes even harmful to the body.

To prepare the extract, vanilla pods are heat treated in boiling water and dried in the open air. The process lasts several months, ends when a white bloom appears on the plant. Vanillin is the substance responsible for the characteristic aroma. Pods insist on 35% alcohol. Then sugar is added to the alcoholic extract, aged, dried. Before packaging, starch is often added to prevent sticking of the granules.

At home

If you do not want to use a product with possible alcohol residues or are not sure about the quality of the spice from the store, you can make it yourself. To do this, use dried pods or vanilla extract, which is prepared at home not on an alcohol basis, but on oil. Use granulated sugar, not powder: the latter, due to fine grinding, quickly absorbs moisture and sticks together.

In terms of the strength of the aroma, homemade spice is often inferior to that made in an industrial factory, but it has its own advantages:

• you know the exact composition, control the quality of the ingredients;
• it is possible to adjust the saturation of smell and taste by changing the ratio of the main components;
• spice is cheaper than store-bought vanilla extract.

How is it different from natural vanilla

Both products are interchangeable in recipes, especially in baking, but there is a difference between them. Natural vanilla is white crystals that are collected from the pods of the plant of the same name after processing. They have a very strong persistent odor that is transferred to any product with which they are mixed. The natural spice has a bitter taste, so it is not used in its pure form and in large quantities. If the product is introduced into the dough, then add a small pinch.

Since ancient times, vanilla has been considered one of the most expensive spices. The reason is the huge costs of its cultivation and production. The vanilla tree in nature grows only in the tropics, produces few fruits, and no more than 3% of the volume and mass of the pod will turn out to be a valuable powder.

What is it needed for

Its main use is baking. Vanilla sugar is part of the dough for buns, pies, cakes; it is added to biscuits, cakes, cookies. Often this spice is not only introduced as a flavoring agent, but also sprinkled on top of sweets. The supplement goes well with cinnamon, cardamom. You can substitute natural vanilla or vanilla essence to make the flavor less strong.

Other Uses for Vanilla Sugar:

• Beverages. A pinch in tea or coffee (in the same amount as regular sugar) will give a pleasant aroma, almost no change in taste.
• For oatmeal, fruit salads. Enough 1/2 tsp. per serving to add sweetness to breakfast without breaking the diet too much.
• Pancakes, cheesecakes, pancakes for losing weight Instead of large portions of regular sugar. Take 1 tsp. vanilla product to give the dish a sweet flavor and deceive the body, but not greatly increase the calorie content of the dish.

Ingredients:

• vanilla pods - 4 pcs.;
• granulated sugar - 680 g.

1. Open the vanilla sticks by cutting them open at the top with a knife and scrape out the contents.
2. Mix with granulated sugar in a wooden or glass bowl - this will rid the spice of excess odors.
3. Rub the ingredients with your hands, mixing together. It is better to work with gloves. Another option is to close the container and shake it for 3-5 minutes to mix everything.
4. Infuse the spice in a closed container for 2-3 days or a week, putting it in a dark, cool place. Before using, be sure to sift the mixture so that the beans do not fall into the dish.

The proportions of sugar and vanilla pods can be changed, focusing on your preferences. According to the presented recipe, the spice is very fragrant. If you want to make it lighter, cooks advise taking 270–400 g of sugar per 1 pod. Another option - 1 pc. and 800 g. Taste and aroma depend on the length of time the spice is aged. Increase this period to 2-3 weeks - you will get sugar with a surprisingly rich and persistent vanilla smell.

Vanilla Pod Selection

In the food industry, 3 varieties of this plant are used:

• Madagascar bourbon. The most famous type, with a fresh aroma that has a slight sourness.
• Mexican. The pods are drier, and the smell has distinct notes of spices and tobacco. Valuable, expensive variety.
• Tahitian. Variety with a soft sweetish-floral aroma that opens quickly. It costs less than the previous ones.

To make sugar, you can use any vanilla bean. They all fit, but will give different flavors. According to culinary specialists, the first 2 varieties (from Madagascar and Mexico) have a more delicate aroma, so they are recommended to choose for baking. You can also buy cheaper vanilla for testing: from Indonesia, India. The latter will give sugar a pleasant caramel flavor. You can often find good quality Ceylon vanilla.