"Most of the world's vanilla is grown in Madagascar, Indonesia, Mexico and Tahiti...
What we call the vanilla bean is the fruit of the vanilla plant. Green when harvested, it is cured over the course of three to six months, during which time it dries out and darkens to a deep brown, and its flavor intensifies. Vanilla manufacturers immerse the cured beans in a solvent of water and alcohol that extracts the flavor. The solvent is then strained and bottled, and the result is pure vanilla extract... Illinois-based Nielsen-Massey Vanillas, a leading producer of vanilla... makes a number of vanilla extracts as well as vanilla paste and vanilla powder... Paste... is made from unstrained beans, and so it contains distinctive flecks of dark brown... that one sees in "vanilla bean" ice cream... Vanilla powder is actually quadruple-strength extract that has been "encapsulated" onto maltodextrin, a corn-based starch... The presence of the starch dilutes the vanilla back down to single strength... Vanilla powder... results in a whiter finished product. Another popular use for vanilla powder is as a decorative dry topping for cappuccino. It also is used in hot-cocoa mixes and high-end cake mixes... to substitute vanilla bean for vanilla extract, ... for one tablespoon of extract, use the scrapings of a whole bean" source : http://www.newsday.com/news/columnists/ny-fdburn4531722nov30,0,2323763.column?coll=ny-rightrail-columnist *********** Regards, Viateur _______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) [email protected] http://orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids_orchidguide.com
