Forum

Anyone using vanilla paste?  I've only just been hearing about it recently and I see Jamie Oliver use it pretty often in his show.  Was wondering what others thought of it.

I keep thinking about buying some too so I would be interested in other members' opinions.  I do love Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla so I'm not sure when or why I would substiture paste.

HI Kay,

 I have run out of vanilla extract, so I was thinking of trying out the vanilla bean paste.  I found this description on the baking bites website.  http://bakingbites.com/2...t-is-vanilla-bean-paste/

Recently I have also been playing with browned butter infused with vanilla.  Kate Zuckerman discussed it and used in a few recipes in The Sweet Life.  I enjoyed it so much that I use it for other things, sometimes just on toast.  And it smells incredible when you are making it.

I also put used vanilla beans into a container of sugar for a perpetual vanilla sugar.

I find that sometimes when I smell extracts I pick up other scents, a bit of a phenolic or camphor like scent.  Nielson Massey is my extract of choice, so I owuld expect their vanilla bean paste to be good as well.

It all makes me wonder if the different mediums / methods of extraction yeild slightly different flavors. 

Lisa

I use vanilla bean paste all the time, so I don't bother buying real vanilla pods anymore which can dry out quite quickly.  There is a quantity measurement on the bottle, 1tsp or maybe 1Tbs is equivalent to 1 vanilla pod.

I would say - go get it!

I recently have been seeing some recipes with vanilla bean paste as one of the ingredients. I found it at King Arthur Flour. I have been tempted to buy some. I see some people have tried it already. I am going to go for it.

The paste incorporates very easily into whatever is being mixed and also provides those lovely flecks of vanilla.  I think it as a fresher, more pure vanilla taste.  Stores well and is quite concentrated.  I would certainly recommend it and find that I reach for the paste rather than the extract.

Not all vanilla paste is equal. I am completely addicted to this: http://www.heilalavanilla.com/.

Try 1/4 teasp in greek yoghurt with a drizzle of maple syrup, some blueberries and some chopped nuts!

I'm wondering if recipes that call for vanilla beans are not just too-too foodie/hypocritical.  If they were written before the political troubles that made Madagascar vanilla so expensive, then OK. But do you ever see new recipes calling for "1 tsp vanilla extract"?  Goes along with the complaint of "preferably organic, whole grain, grass-fed-fertilized, fair trade-sourced wheat" as an ingredient.  I just checked and the going rate for a tube of vanilla beans works out to $5 per bean.  Do I have to spend that on 1 quart of ice cream?  Is paste any better (and cheaper), at least enough to use more frequently, especially on a trial recipe that may not make it into my food rotation anyway?

I've been using vanilla bean paste for a few years, use it in the same way as vanilla extract. The flavour is about the same as a good quality extract and it does contain seeds.  I'm in Australia, the most widely available brand here is "Queen".