Monday, December 31, 2012

How To Make Homemade Peppermint Extract


Peppermint extract not only provide a wonderful additional flavor to things like chocolate, it also helps to relieve pain, calms irritable bowels, eases an upset stomach, fights bad breath and is rich in antioxidants. This also works on about any herb you wish to make extract from. Plus citrus peals work well this way.


 Harvest a bunch of mint leaves from your mint plant. Remove mint leaves from stalks and pack leaves into a measuring cup to determine how much mint you have.

for a pint jar use about 1/2 -2/3  cup of mint.
1pint Vodka the higher proof the better
 
Rinse mint leaves in water and squeeze leaves in your hands to bruise the leaves before placing them into a clean glass jar. (Bruising the leaves helps them release their oil when they’re placed in the vodka.)

Pour in the vodka, making sure that use enough to submerge all of your leaves.  Enough vodka to cover my leaves was 1 1/2 cups.
Cover your jar with a lid and allow to steep for about a month in a cool, dark place. After the month has elapsed, you can start tasting the extract to see if it’s developed the flavor and intensity you want. If so, strain out the leaves and use the extract just as you would store-bought extract.

If your mint extract is not yet strong enough, allow it to continue to steep until it reaches your desired flavor.

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