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Baking

Homemade Vanilla Sugar

November 28, 2020 by Marisa 18 Comments

Easy Homemade Vanilla Sugar

Learn how to make your own homemade vanilla sugar to use in your favourite cookie recipes or other baked goods. All you need is some granulated sugar, a fresh vanilla bean and a few minutes of your time. So easy!

Homemade vanilla sugar in a glass jar with two whole vanilla beans inside.

I think that it’s pretty safe to say that this is by far the easiest recipe you’ll find here on the blog. And one that can be prepared in mere minutes too!

Over the years it has become a staple ingredient in my kitchen. Especially around the holidays. So I always make sure to prepare some way ahead of my baking projects because it needs this valuable time for the flavours to infuse.

In doing so, you’ll be rewarded with the most incredibly fragrant sugar speckled with the little black seeds of the vanilla bean.

What is Vanilla Sugar?

Vanilla sugar is simply that! Two ingredients consisting of just regular granulated sugar infused with the seeds of a vanilla bean. 

It’s a simple process of splitting the bean across the pod and extracting the caviar-like seeds and then incorporating the seeds with the sugar.

The hollowed out bean pod is given new life by burying it deep into the sugar mixture to enhance the sweet essence of the vanilla flavour for months to come.

Did You Know?

Did you know that vanilla beans are the second most expensive spice right after saffron? And that’s because vanilla beans are extremely labor-intensive to grow.

Having said that, it’s still widely used from professional chefs to home cooks all over the world as it’s such a versatile spice.

Five vanilla beans tied with a yellow and white ribbon and a white bowl in the background.

Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Beans

Madagascar bourbon vanilla beans have nothing to do with “bourbon” the alcohol.

The Bourbon vanilla gets its name from Île Bourbon which is now known as Réunion, the region where these long and slender beans were cultivated, cured and also grow in Madagascar and other Islands along the Indian Ocean.

They are by far the most popular and sought after vanilla beans. 

They’re moist, pliable and with a sweet buttery scent, making them simply perfect to bake with.

Although the Madagascar bourbon variety is my favourite you can just as easily substitute it with the Tahitian or Mexican vanilla beans. 

One vanilla bean sliced through while removing the seed with a silver knife.

How to make Vanilla Infused Sugar

  • With a sharp pairing knife, slice open the vanilla bean along its length.
  • Spread the bean apart and use the back of a knife to scrape out the seeds.
  • Combine the sugar and vanilla seeds together in a bowl.
  • Stir together the 2 ingredients until well dispersed.
  • You can do this with 2 rubber spatulas. Simply rub together the sugar and vanilla seeds with the spatulas to release the larger clumps.
  • Alternately, you can also place the sugar and vanilla seeds in a food processor and pulse for a few seconds till thoroughly combined.
  • Transfer the vanilla sugar into an airtight container and bury the pod deeply into the sugar.

SMall white bowls filled with vanilla sugar.

Over time the Vanilla Sugar becomes more and more fragrant. So go ahead and make it a couple of weeks in advance before you start your holiday baking.

Tip of the day: When a recipe calls for the seeds of a vanilla bean, don’t discard the pod.

Rather, give it new life by adding it to your vanilla sugar canister, as this will help to maintain the flavour of your vanilla sugar and refreshes it at the same time.

And continue filling the canister with more granulated sugar as the quantity depletes.

A glass jar filled with aromatic vanilla sugar.

What is Vanilla Sugar Used For?

Vanilla sugar can be utilized in various ways. 

You can use it to sweeten coffee or tea and even use it in your next baking adventure. And yes even savoury recipes!

My favourite way of using vanilla sugar is rolling some raspberry filled Butterball Cookies into the vanilla infused sugar. It adds such a sparkly appeal to these buttery cookies. 

I also love using it in my Wild Blueberry Lemon Biscotti. The vanilla sugar lends such a wonderful warm fragrance to the twice baked cookies and pairs wonderfully with the white chocolate chips and dried blueberries.

Need a gift idea? You can fill decorative glass jars or bottles with the homemade vanilla sugar. And you can then gift decorated jars to guests as a “sweet” way of saying thank-you. Pun intended! 

Espresso coffee in a glass cup with a jar of sugar in the background.

This Homemade Vanilla Sugar recipe was originally published December 2, 2015 and republished November 28, 2020 with new photos and content.

A glass jar filled with homemade vanilla sugar.
Print Recipe
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Homemade Vanilla Sugar

Learn how to make your own homemade vanilla sugar to use in your favourite cookie recipes or other baked goods. All you need is some granulated sugar, a fresh vanilla bean and a few minutes of your time.
Prep Time5 mins
Course: Condiment
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Homemade Vanilla Sugar
Servings: 2 cups
Calories: 780kcal
Author: Marisa

Ingredients

  • 1 Vanilla Bean
  • 2 cups granulated sugar

Instructions

  • Slice the Vanilla Bean down the middle from end to end with a sharp knife.
  • Using the back of the knife, scrape out the seeds.
  • Combine the sugar with the vanilla seeds in a medium size bowl and stir until the vanilla seeds are well dispersed.
  • Alternately, you can use a food processor to speed this up even quicker.
  • Transfer to an airtight container and bury the pods deeply in the vanilla sugar.
  • It can be stored indefinitely.
  • Use in your favorite coffee, tea or desserts.

Nutrition

Calories: 780kcal | Carbohydrates: 201g | Fat: 1g | Sodium: 2mg | Sugar: 200g | Iron: 1mg

 

Filed Under: Baking, Dessert Tagged With: Baking, holiday, Sugar, sweet, vanilla, Vanilla Bean

Butterball Cookies

December 4, 2018 by Marisa 69 Comments

A white cookie platter filled with butterball cookies.

Cute as a button and with only 3 ingredients in the dough, these Butterball Cookies are simply irresistible! They’re sandwiched together with seedless raspberry jam and rolled in aromatic vanilla sugar for a sparkly appeal. They also make a wonderful nut free cookie recipe to add to your repertoire.

A three ingredient cookie dough. These Butterball Cookies are sandwiched together with raspberry jam and rolled in vanilla sugar.

This post was originally published in December of 2015 and republished December 4, 2018 with updated photos and content.

My exquisitely fragrant Vanilla Sugar is ready and waiting to coat these cute little one bite Butterball Cookies!

I am filling mine with raspberry jam as it seems to be everyone’s favourite. But also because the redness of the jam really adds a festive colour this time of the year. This is especially wonderful when you serve a platter full of Christmas cookies. They stand out like little jewels ready to be plucked off the tray!

Alternately the butterball cookies can be filled with Nutella or even chocolate ganache. However you choose to fill them they will garner many smiles from both kids and adults alike.

A three ingredient cookie dough. These Butterball Cookies are sandwiched together with raspberry jam and rolled in vanilla sugar.

Its not an overly complicated recipe or with any fancy techniques. We are taking a few simple ingredients, which you probably already have on hand. And, we are turning them into these irresistible buttery morsels.

So get comfortable, play your favourite holiday music and lets roll some butterballs!

A three ingredient cookie dough. These Butterball Cookies are sandwiched together with raspberry jam and rolled in vanilla sugar.

How To Make Perfect Butterball Cookies

You will need 3 cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.

Make sure your dough has been chilled at least 4 hours before rolling the cookies. You can also make the dough up to 5 days in advance and refrigerate till ready to use.

Measure out 1/4 teaspoon of cookie dough and roll in the palm of your hands, no bigger than the size of a hazelnut in it’s shell.

Continue with the remaining dough and chill the butterballs in your freezer for 30 minutes before baking.

When ready to bake space them out on the cookie sheet about 2 inches apart as these will spread. Bake one cookie tray at a time while keeping the remaining cookies chilling in the freezer.

Once the cookies are baked and cooled, place a small dollop of jam on the flat surface of one half of the cooled cookies and top with another half to sandwich them together. Roll the cookies in the vanilla sugar.

They’re simply beautiful served in an elegant footed glass bowl and also make a wonderful addition to any holiday cookie platter.

Which ever way you serve them, they’re sure to impress your guests!

If you make this recipe remember to tag @marisasitaliankitchen on Instagram so I can see your creation!

A three ingredient cookie dough. These Butterball Cookies are sandwiched together with raspberry jam and rolled in vanilla sugar.

A white cookie platter filled with butterball cookies.
Print Recipe
4.67 from 6 votes

Butterball Cookies

Irresistible Butterball Cookies! They're sandwiched together with seedless raspberry jam and rolled in aromatic vanilla sugar for a sparkly appeal.
Prep Time1 hr
Cook Time8 mins
Total Time1 hr 8 mins
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: nut free cookie, butterball cookie, sandwich cookie, vanilla sugar, raspberry jam
Servings: 50 cookies
Author: Marisa

Ingredients

  • 1 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
  • 1 cup vanilla sugar for rolling

Instructions

  • Using a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the butter on medium speed for about 3 to 5 minutes until the butter is light and fluffy. Mix in the sugar until well blended then add in the flour and continue mixing until the dough is formed. Wrap the dough with saran wrap and chill the dough for about 3 hours. Chilling the dough will prevent the cookies from spreading out too much when baked.
  • Preheat the oven to 375*F.
  • Use a small spoon to tear out small pieces of dough and use the palm of your hands to roll them out into small balls about the size of a hazelnut. Place them on a cookie sheet and chill them in the freezer for 30 minutes.
  • Line 3 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Place the cookies 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets (cookies will spread). Bake one sheet at a time for 8 to 10 minutes or just until the cookies are firm and pale golden in colour. Keep the remaining cookie sheets chilled till ready to bake the next batch.
  • Spread the flat side of half the cookies with the jam and then top with remaining cookies to form a sandwich. Once you have paired them and formed little sandwich cookies, roll them in vanilla sugar to coat all over.

Notes

This recipe is adapted from a wonderful cookbook: Chocolate and Vanilla by Gale Gand

 

Filed Under: Baking, Cookies, Dessert Tagged With: Butterball Cookies, Christmas cookies, holiday cookies, raspberry jam, sandwich cookies, vanilla sugar

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