Less expensive (and dare I say 'better'!) vanilla - following up on a post from Richard

On the subject of imitation vanilla, I use a vanilla "blend" that claims to have a portion...

...of real vanilla along with imitation. I love it! It is a Mexican brand called "Molina" that is readily available in Mexican markets (and some Krogers markets). It is CHEAP, has no coumarin and tastes like what we know as traditional vanilla.

It is delicious in baked goods and non-baked desserts like whipped cream and such.

I called the company once to see how much "real" vanilla was in the blend and they wouldn't tell me, claiming it is a proprietary blend and a trade secret. Ha! Probably three drops of the real stuff in a 300-gallon vat!

Regardless, it is the vanilla I use in 90% of my cooking and my family and friends love the end results!

Michael

https://www.amazon.com/Mexican-Vanilla-Molina-Vainilla-Vanillin/dp/B01B02F2I6/ref=sr_1_3_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1546402550&sr=8-3&keywords=molina+vanilla+extract

 
Interesting taste surprise

We love fruitcake and make lots of it. I also age them and have nurtured one to 7 years that tasted like fine cherry brandy. Wrapped in cheesecloth, doused with Scotch or Cognac, etc.

A friend from my hometown and I were discussing fruitcakes, and she was telling me how wonderful her 94 YO mother's fruitcake is. She also uses a pound cake base like I do these days. So we decided to swap fruitcake samples; we each bake lots of small loaves for giving.

The flavor profile in mum's fruitcake was shrieking vanilla-caramel to me. I commented to her about it and she said she uses the Kentucky Bourbon Barrel company's aged vanilla. I asked for the recipe, and lo, there it was: Butterscotch Chips! That was the mysterious vanilla-caramel taste I was getting in her fruitcake. Truly amazing.

I would never in a million years thought about adding butterscotch chips to my fruitcake, but after tasting this, I am sold. Add them to your cakes for an intense vanilla-caramel flavor boost.

 
Ck your local Target (or ship w/your Walmart order)

Molina Mexican Vanilla not available in-store here in MI - only ship - but 8oz at $1.59/$1.50 is a great price. Colleen

 
Oops - 10/'18 FDA Warns of Dangers of Mexican Vanilla

FRIDAY, Oct. 31 (HealthDay News) -- So-called Mexican "vanilla" is often made with a toxic substance called coumarin and shouldn't be bought by consumers, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned this week.

Coumarin is related to warfarin, which is found in some blood thinners. Eating foods with coumarin may be dangerous for people taking blood thinners, because the combination could increase their risk of bleeding.

Mexican vanilla -- which may smell and taste like real vanilla and is cheaper than the real thing -- is sold in Mexico and other Latin American countries and has started appearing in some U.S. stores and restaurants, the FDA said.

Pure vanilla is made with the extract of beans from the vanilla plant. Mexican vanilla is frequently made with the extract of beans from the tonka tree, an entirely different plant that belongs to the pea family. Tonka bean extract contains coumarin. Since 1954, coumarin has been banned from all food products sold in the United States.

Consumers should be cautious when buying vanilla in Mexico and other Latin American countries, the FDA advised. Look for "vanilla bean" on the label's ingredient list. Don't buy the product if it says "tonka bean" or has a vague ingredient list or no list.
https://abcnews.go.com/Health/Healthday/story?id=6157423&page=1

 
Love Hello Dolly bars with butterscotch chips added to semi

We were surprised at the huge flavor pop that the butterscotch chips added smileys/smile.gif Colleen

 
I have not yet tasted anything that tastes good with Butterscotch chips. . .

Maybe I just don't like butterscotch chips. I know I certainly don't like them in cookies or bars; every time I taste them in something I am judging, they seem to overwhelm everything else in the recipe.

Maybe the people adding them are adding too many. I am a
"less chocolate chips in the cookie" person. I also find many sweet recipes have too much vanilla added, or at least it seems so when I make them at home. Maybe it is my vanilla as it is real vanilla and very strong.

I think it is just the flavor of butterscotch chips.Other butterscotch things, I like. . .Maybe just a few butterscotch chips would be good in something. But I am afraid to try!

 
Funny you mentioned vanilla. Christopher Kimball was cooking with someone on an...

...episode of Milk Street Kitchen where he said something along the lines of, 'There's always too little vanilla in recipes. If a recipe says 'one teaspoon of vanilla' I always just go ahead and add one tablespoon...".

Hmmmmm.....

Michael

 
I learned to use vanilla as a sub for sugar. Living with a diabetic demanded some creative

thinking as I was always nuts about sugar. I then started putting vanilla in lots of foods that I would not normally have considered.

Now I too double the quantities in most recipes. I think the baked product ends up with a rich sweetness that it lacks without the extra vanilla.

And Galliano....my favourite liqueur. Such a good mixer.

 
I learned to add vanilla to lemonade with an eyedropper . . .

Just a drop or two made the lemonade sweeter.

It does help enhance sweetness!

 
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