Vanilla Rum Strawberry Spritzer
Serves 6
Ingredients:
4 cups strawberries, hulled
1 whole Nirmala’s Kitchen Vanilla Beans (see note below)
1 tablespoon fresh-squeezed lime juice
1 cup white rum
3 cups rose wine, or seltzer chilled
Ice cubes (optional)
Fresh mint
Strawberries halved to serve
Directions:
Place strawberries, vanilla, and lime juice in a blender. Blend until smooth. Strain mixture into a large jug. Add rum. Stir until well combined. Place ice cubes (if using) in six 1-cup-capacity mason jars.
Top with strawberry mixture and wine. Stir gently. Serve with mint and extra strawberries.
How to Split a Vanilla Bean:
On a clean cutting board, split the vanilla bean down its length using a paring knife. Scrape out the seeds: Working with one half at a time, hold down the tip of the bean against the cutting board. Use the dull side of your paring knife — not the sharp side — and scrape the vanilla beans from the pod.
How to Make Vanilla Sugar
Ingredients:
6 cups granulated white sugar
1 whole vanilla bean (See Note how to split vanilla)
Directions:
Add the sugar to a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid.
Add the seeds and the bean to the sugar.
Place the lid on the container and shake it up.
Whenever you use a vanilla bean in a recipe, just add the seeded or discarded bean to the sugar. Store for a week, until the vanilla infuses the sugar.
Use in place of regular sugar wherever you desire.
