Vanilla Sugar

by Ellie Weightman

1 cup granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean stalk

Have a plastic container large enough to hold a few cups of sugar ready with a tight fitting lid.

With a sharp paring knife, split the vanilla bean down the center being careful not to cut in half. Open the pod and using the edge of the knife, scrape out the tiny black beans. Put the beans right in to the sugar and stir well. Add the empty bean stalks, stir and bury the stalks in the sugar. Cover tightly and let sit for two weeks. You may want to occasionally stir the sugar to avoid clumping.

You can increase your recipe using 1 stalk for every 2 cups of sugar.

As your sugar gets low, just add more sugar and stir and again allow to sit for 2 weeks.

Vanilla sugar can be used in any recipe where you use white granulated sugar. It is excellent in coffee, tea, cake recipes – almost anywhere you would use the granulated sugar. Yes you will have black beans, but that is the beauty and flavor of real vanilla.

Hint: Remove some of the sugar to a Mason Jar or other jar with a tight lid and use everyday. Add more sugar to the vanilla bean container, stir and wait 2 more weeks to replenish your mason jar. After a while you will have to replace the bean stalks with fresh vanilla bean pods, but they can be used over and over again.