Substitutes
The Best Vanilla Extract Substitute Is Probably Hiding in Your Kitchen
Lookin' at you, cake batter.
By now, you’ve probably been told once or twice to make your own vanilla extract. (One of those times may or may not have been by us.) Recipes tell you how easy-breezy it is to DIY the solution, which is essentially just vanilla pods soaked in alcohol. Just buy vanilla beans, split down the center, stuff in a jar, drown in booze (most people use vodka; bourbon is fair game, too).
But what if I told you that I have an even easier method for homemade extract: You just, well, skip the vanilla.
Hear me out. American baking has its chosen ingredients: There’s cinnamon, which shows up everywhere (even when it’s not invited). And vanilla, which is so overworked and ubiquitous that many equate it with “plain”—the absence, versus the addition, of a flavor. So unfair to vanilla. Often, it shines on its own accord (these recipes will convince you!). Other times, it's there by default—a wee teaspoon, just because. That's when you should let bourbon sneak in.
Maybe you don't even notice. Maybe you like it even more!
What’s more: Most vanilla extract is pricey. (Eater did a great deep dive on the beans’ price spike following a cyclone in Madagascar, the world’s leading producer of the ingredient.) You know how buying in bulk saves you money? Go into your kitchen and find the vanilla extract. Now find the bourbon. Which bottle is bigger? Seems silly, right? The price difference does, too: Most vanilla extract you’ll find in a supermarket costs between $2.50 and $6 per ounce. A mid-shelf bourbon, on the other hand, would cost less than a $1 per ounce.
Here are the rules:
- Use a dark alcohol with a distinct personality. My go-to spirits are dark rum, bourbon, and brandy. You can use whichever brand you have on hand—no need to use something fancy, here. (If you have none of the above, you could try almond extract or maple syrup, too.)
- Simply swap out the vanilla extract and replace with 1 to 2 times that amount in alcohol. Example: If a recipe calls for 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, replace with 1 to 2 teaspoons dark rum. (If you go the almond extract route, halve the amount of vanilla—so for 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, swap in 1/2 teaspoon almond extract.)
And that's it! Now give it a whirl. Here are some recipes and the alcohols you can sub in for vanilla extract. Even better than the original? You tell me.
Dark rum is an obvious choice for a vanilla extract substitute. It’s smoky-sweet, a little spicy, and loves to be paired with both rich and tart flavors (this is why piña coladas are so good!). Speaking of which, when thinking of how best to swap vanilla for booze, why not keep in mind the flavors that shine in a rum-based cocktail? Try dark rum instead of vanilla in these treats, which lean into rich coconut, warming spices, and floral fruit:
Padma Lakshmi's Clouds of Cardamom & Cashew Cookies
These buttery, crumbly cookies are made with rich ground cashews and cardamom.
Violet’s Pineapple-Coconut Cake
This super-moist, sweet cake has crushed pineapple in the batter and is coated in a sticky caramel frosting.
Mango-Lime Trifle with Brown Butter Cake
Pair zingy mango-lime puree with thick pastry cream, whipped cream, and a nutty brown butter cake—it’s a dessert fit for any season.
Bourbon swapped in for vanilla is another easy solution. Many actually describe vanilla as a primary flavor in the sweet spirit. Caramel, maple, chocolate, and butterscotch are other notes people pick up on in bourbon, so it would only make sense for it to shine when splashed into recipes featuring those ingredients. Ditch the vanilla and try bourbon in these desserts (you won’t be sorry):
Brown Butter Blondies
Fudgy, chocolate-stuffed blondies taste like caramel thanks to brown sugar and deeply browned butter.
Teddie's Apple Cake
This moist, cinnamon-kissed apple cake is just as welcome at breakfast with a scoop of yogurt as it is after dinner, with plenty of vanilla ice cream.
Chocolate Chess Pie
Ooey-gooey chess pie gets a chocolate twist here, making it ideal for colder weather dessert tables.
Syrupy, fruity, barely sweet brandy is one of those bottles I buy and promptly forget about. While I don’t pour myself a snifter of the stuff regularly (er, ever?) the bottle remains in the back of my liquor cabinet, just in case. One of those cases? Running out of vanilla extract. I’ll opt for a splash of brandy instead of vanilla in super-creamy desserts to cut through some of that richness. These recipes are a great place to start:
Hannah Bronfman's No Cook Chocolate Mousse, With Avocado
Don’t let the avocado factor spook you: this is the creamiest, richest chocolate mousse. Who needs the heavy cream?
Clementine Chocolate Lava Cakes
Rich, chocolate-y, olive oil-kissed lava cakes are petite, but pack a punch. Still, they couldn’t be easier to pop in the oven when you’re craving a cake.
Our Best Vanilla Ice Cream
Make this classic, egg yolk-enriched ice cream to keep in the freezer at all times.
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Written by: Emma Laperruque
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51 Comments
Curious: have you tried infusing these spirits with other things like citrus or cinnamon for even more layered flavors?
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One thing I’m wondering: would alcohol substitutions like these work in gluten-free baking too, or do they behave differently?
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Quick question: Can this technique work in cold desserts like ice cream, or does the alcohol become too noticeable without baking?
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random comments on a food blog. As MacGuffin said, if you're happy with the vanilla diffusions you make, great! But I've not had that experience, and I had a cottage baking business at the time, so I was baking nearly every day. I had to add vanilla bean paste to mine to get them to the level of a weak vanilla flavoring, so I'll stick with the more cost-effective commercially-produced vanilla extracts.
I really suggest reading that article; it's a real eye-opener. Smaug posted the title a few comments previous.
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