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My Wife And The Vanilla Extract (Or: 'Female Logic') [Long]

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Howard said:
Is this a homemade or off-the-shelf product?
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"shortening" is a generic term covering all solid fat. It's become more specialized to refer to hydrogenated oil. If I were reading an old recipe book, I wouldn't automatically assume vegetable. In fact, I'd probably assume lard.
 
Pulsar said:
Yeah, wikipedia is full of shit. Shortening is not vegetable oil.
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Shortening is not just normal vegetable oil. It is hydrogenated solidified oil which wikipedia explicitly says so.

It starts out as vegetable oil which is then hydrogenated and crystallized so it remains solid at room temperature and shelf stable to not require refrigeration. It is called vegetable shortening for this reason.

Solid fat from animal origins was at one point in history referred to as shortening, but now retains its usual name. Instead beef fat = suet, milk fat = butter, pork fat = lard, chicken fat = schmaltz etc... But solidified hydrogenated crystallized vegetable fat does not occur in nature and the invented term for it is shortening.
 
I must be too "American" myself. I read the whole story, and I agree with the wife. That vanilla "sugar" crap is just artificial vanilla flavoring. You need the real stuff, the flavor is very different. Perhaps our palates is just more refined here.

Though personally I'd soak the beans in rum rather than vodka. Much nicer flavor in baked goods.
 
The fuck do europeans use for making delicious vanilla flavored things if they don't have vanilla extract?
 
Data-Medics said:
I must be too "American" myself. I read the whole story, and I agree with the wife. That vanilla "sugar" crap is just artificial vanilla flavoring. You need the real stuff, the flavor is very different. Perhaps our palates is just more refined here.

Though personally I'd soak the beans in rum rather than vodka. Much nicer flavor in baked goods.
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Vanilla sugar is just when you split a vanilla pod and stick it in a container of sugar. There's nothing artificial about it.
 
Then again, I grew up eating fake maple syrup and personally don't really notice the difference between that and the overpriced real maple syrup. However ask any Canadian, and they'll tell you otherwise.

It's all what you're used to.
 
WelshBloke said:
Vanilla sugar is just when you split a vanilla pod and stick it in a container of sugar. There's nothing artificial about it.
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And how exactly is the vanilla flavor supposed to travel from the bean to the sugar? Seems you'd need a infusion transport mechanism like say..... alcohol...
 
Merad said:
The fuck do europeans use for making delicious vanilla flavored things if they don't have vanilla extract?
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Either vanilla pods or vanilla extract.

(or sometimes that horrible vanilla flavouring if we're in a rush and pick up the wrong bottle at our mythical vanilla extract stores)
 
MarkXIX said:
No one else wants to know exactly what kind of "cinnamon sticks" we are talking about here? TTIWWP.
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Yeah, that's where he lost me.

ratio6x5-600.jpg
 
There are logical women out there, it just appears to be a very rare virtue. My woman is not very logical, but in the grand scheme of things, she is awesome, and nobody is without flaws.
 
flexy said:
Yes you heard right. France. Basically you need to 'import' them since France seems to be "THE" place for Vanilla beans, so no matter where you live you will likely end up ordering them from some French Vanilla farmers or breeders (?) Stéphane or Jacques from fricking France.
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umm false. Mexican vanilla is quite good and Vanilla can only grow 10 to 20 degrees north and south of the equator because its an orchid.
 
I bake regularly, and I'm sooo not interested in making my own pure vanilla extract. 😛

I have 3 vanillas in my cupboard: Nielsen Massey's Pure Madagascar Vanilla Extract :thumbsup: , San Luis Rey Mexican Vanilla, and Nielsen Massey's Tahitian Vanilla.
 
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