Vanilla Beans

I have had a few people ask me about the vanilla beans for the Whipped Vanilla Bean Cheesecakes. So here are a few pictures of what to expect when working with vanilla beans:

First, incase you don't know what they look like this is what you are looking for

When cutting into a vanilla bean you want to lay it flat on a cutting board, holding one end against the cutting board slice it right down the middle lengthwise. This next picture shows what you will see when you pull it apart

You can use the tip of your knife, a spoon or whatever else you can think of to scrape out the tiny little seeds.

I hope that helps! It really is easy and it adds such good flavor. There are several other ways to use vanilla beans too. You can make your own vanilla extract & give your sugar a vanilla flavor. I have also heard that you can use the vanilla beans to add flavor to drinks such as lemonade, tea, coffee, hot chocolate, etc.... The possibilities are endless...... have fun with it!