An orchid plant produces vanilla flavoring.
The vanilla flavoring you use in cookies and cakes actually derives from an orchid plant, Vanilla planifolia, which is native to the tropical forests of Mexico. The flowers only bloom for one day, and drop to the ground unless fertilized by the Melipona bee. Those that are fertilized produce vanilla pods that perhaps one day will grow up to become vanilla extract and add a sweet flavor to a pastry or an ice cream cone.
Vanilla Types
The four main types of vanilla are Bourbon, Tahitian, Indonesian and Mexican -- classified according to the part of the world that grows them. The Bourbon, Indonesian and Mexican vanilla beans derive from the Vanilla panifolia orchid, with Mexican vanilla having a slightly earthier flavor and Indonesian having a smokier flavor. Most manufacturers of vanilla extracts made with Indonesian beans blend them with other beans as well.
Vanilla Beans
Whole vanilla beans are also used as a flavoring agent. To access the vanilla bean, split the pod, then scrape the beans out with a knife. These beans are ideal in recipes for dishes that are light in color and are visually enhanced by the brown flecks indicating that vanilla has been used as an ingredient -- creme brulee, for example. You can also use the pod part of the vanilla. One method is to bury the pod in a jar of sugar, which imparts a sweet vanilla flavor to the sugar, making it a flavorful addition to coffee or desserts.
Vanilla Extract
Vanilla extract is made by crushing up vanilla beans and storing them in steel tanks with alcohol and water. The extraction process takes approximately two days. Manufacturers of extract over whether to use heat in the process -- some believe it's necessary to use heat to extract the flavor, others believe it's better to keep the beans as cool as possible or the heat will evaporate the extract. To be labeled pure vanilla extract, the Food and Drug Administration requires a ratio of 13.35 oz. of vanilla beans to a gallon of a minimum of 35 percent alcohol and 65 percent water.
Vanilla Flavor vs. Imitation Vanilla
While pure vanilla extract is made with vanilla beans, alcohol and water, various vanilla flavorings are on the market. If the product is called vanilla flavor, then that means it's made with pure vanilla but instead of alcohol, the vanilla beans are mixed with glycerine or propylene glycol. Imitation vanilla is made from a synthetic version of the chemical vanillin, which gives vanilla its flavor. A difference between extract made with pure vanillin and extract made with synthetic vanillin is that pure vanillin extract also contains other organic flavors. In imitation vanilla extract, the only flavoring agent is the synthetic vanillin.
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