Thanksgiving & Vanilla 2012

I wanted to share a few Thanksgiving memories, mostly for me, as I find this blog a great resource for trying to figure out how I did stuff in the past! I couldn't figure out what I served last Thanksgiving, and only remembered I liked the sweet potatoes. Then I looked at the photos of last year & discovered what recipes to use. Anyway, we had a great dinner with great friends, and this year it really did feel like Thanksgiving.

 

The Gang

Tiahna & Lisa

I also wanted to share (or remind myself for later) how to make homemade vanilla. It's everywhere on Pinterest, & very easy to make. My mom inspired me by making her own vanilla & then shipped some to me all the way from home. All you need is real vanilla beans, some alcohol and bottles. I think the secret is to split the beans & scrape them out, then submerge the beans & seeds in the alcohol. I used an old large pickle jar & steeped the beans for a few months. The longer they steep, the better the vanilla. I used Vodka, but I think you can use Rum or other alcohol. It was hard enough for me to walk in the liquor store & figure the Vodka part out. That's all real vanilla is made from, alcohol & vanilla! Happy baking!