How to Make Vanilla Honey
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If you’ve never tried vanilla honey, it’s a decadent flavor experience. With floral vanilla notes and that classic honey flavor, this duo is ideal for serving with hot tea, drizzling on scones, mixing into a latte, and more!
If you love that pure vanilla flavor and scent, learn to make your own vanilla extract, whip up a batch of vanilla maple syrup, or try our vanilla sugar scrub!
I love playing with vanilla. It’s an underrated flavor. How on earth is vanilla the boring flavor??
This homemade vanilla honey is extremely easy with its two ingredients. However, don’t let the short ingredient list fool you. This infused honey is a superb example of how two good things can become greater than the sum of their parts.
What is Vanilla Honey?
It’s just a simple pot of honey left to absorb the delicious vanilla taste and aroma for a couple of days or weeks.
Since honey is already sweet, the added vanilla transforms it into a truly delectable treat full of delicious flavor.
Ingredients for Vanilla Infused Honey
This is a pretty simple recipe, friend. You already know what’s inside, but let’s get into the details.
I recommend using the very best ingredients. This isn’t the time for subpar vanilla beans or crystallized honey. You want the good stuff!
Vanilla beans
Although I love using extract-grade pods in my homemade vanilla extract, I only use grade-A beans in this recipe.
It is worth the extra cost to be able to scrape out that gorgeous vanilla caviar from the inside. Plus, you want the pod itself to be moist and full of that amazing vanilla smell.
The best vanilla beans for this recipe are organic, grade-A Madagascar beans. Don’t worry too much about the type of vanilla bean – you can use any (Tahitian, Mexican, Madagascar, etc). However, I stuck with Madagascar for its traditional vanilla scent.
I recommend using the organic vanilla beans from Native Vanilla. They’re incredibly aromatic and perfect for all your homemade desserts!
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Organic Grade A vanilla beans
These beans were the perfect size, quality, and variety for this recipe!
Organic raw honey
This is a great quality, affordable choice for making a wide variety of infused honeys.
Honey
Choose a neutral, regular honey that won’t overpower the vanilla notes. Look for a light color. The lighter honey varieties tend to have a milder flavor. Acacia honey is one of the lightest honey options but can be hard to find.
I used Nature Nate’s organic, raw honey for this recipe. Check out your local farmers market to find a local beekeeper who can direct you to the lightest honey they have.
Read: Where to Buy the Best Organic Honey
Equipment
- Sharp knife & cutting board
- 8 oz glass jar
How to Make Vanilla Honey
- On your cutting board, slice open your vanilla pod(s) with a long vertical line.
- Scrape out the vanilla bean specks (vanilla caviar) and add them to the mason jar.
- Add the sliced vanilla bean pod to the jar.
- Top the entire mixture with honey.
- Allow the vanilla bean honey to sit for at least a couple of days. Stir or turn the jar often to integrate the two ingredients.
Vanilla Honey Uses
This is the best part! Once your infusion has cured, get ready for flavor!
- Spoon over greek yogurt
- Add to your peanut butter sandwiches
- Drizzle over hot buttered toast or English muffins
- Stir into a cup of hot tea
- Sweeten a latte
- Drizzle over vanilla ice cream for an aromatic experience
- Mix with sugar for a heavenly sugar scrub
Tips & Variations
To get the most out of your vanilla flavor, scrape the caviar out from inside the pod. This will disperse the oils and infuse the honey a lot faster. Feel free to add two vanilla beans if you want a potent flavor.
This recipe is pretty close to vanilla paste! can try making your own by cutting the honey quantity in half and adding the vanilla caviar from at least two vanilla beans.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do honey and vanilla go together?
Absolutely! Vanilla adds an extra floral note to sweet honey. When combined properly, they’re an amazing combination.
It’s essential to combine the right type of vanilla and honey to balance the two floral flavors together. Opt for a strong vanilla, like Madagascar, and a mild, light-colored honey.
How do you flavor honey?
It’s easy to flavor honey similar to the way you make extracts for baking. Simply allow the flavor component (lavender, cinnamon, etc) to infuse with the honey over time.
You’ll have a delicious condiment that can take any recipe to the next level!
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Vanilla Honey
Equipment
- Sharp knife
- Cutting board
- 8 oz mason jar
Ingredients
- 8 oz regular honey, Choose a light-colored honey
- 1-2 whole vanilla bean pods, fresh, Grade A
Instructions
- On your cutting board, slice open one vanilla pod with a long vertical line.
- Scrape out the vanilla bean specks (vanilla caviar) and add them to the mason jar.
- Add the sliced vanilla bean pod to the jar.
- Top the entire mixture with honey.
- Allow the mixture to sit for at least a couple of days. Stir or turn the jar often to integrate the two ingredients.
