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Alcohol-Free Extracts For Baking – vanilla, orange, lemon & almond

Partial and close shot front on 4 glass bottle of homemade alcohol free extracts labelled vanilla, orange, lemon & almond, on day one 1 with clear liquid.
Try my easy to make & 10 minute active-time recipe for alcohol-free extracts for your baking needs.  Try vanilla extract, orange extract, lemon extract, almond extract & more.   Let me show you how:

Alcohol-Free Extracts For Baking

– Vanilla, Orange, Lemon & Almond


Close partial shot of few glass bottle, bigger one at the front, labelled 'vanilla' with slight brown colour to the liquid from alcohol-free vanilla extract after 4 weeks.

What Are Alcohol-free Extracts?

These alcohol-free extracts are flavoured extracts to use in your baking. Free-from alcohol, they are made using food-grade vegetable glycerine.

The vegetable glycerine is in essence a sugar-like syrup, that like alcohol, has a preservative effect so you have no worries of the extract ever going out of date or spoiling.

You can make pretty much any flavour of alcohol-free extract you want or need. Here I show you how to make the classic flavours used in baking – vanilla, orange, lemon & almond

Other extract flavour examples are mint, cinnamon & even coconut.


Why Make Alcohol-free Extracts?

  • alcohol-free
  • vegetarian, vegan & Halal
  • gluten-free
  • quick & easy
  • tasty
  • minimal active-time
  • free of extra ingredients
  • saves money
  • cuts down food-waste
  • step-by-step instructions & video
  • easy to share out & gift
  • can be made any time of the year

Ingredients & Alternatives

Overhead photo on pink backdrop of labelled bowls of ingredients - flaked almonds, vegetable glycerine, water & orange peel for alcohol free extracts.

Here are the ingredients for the alcohol-free baking extracts:

(*note ingredient amounts are listed in the Recipe Card below*)

  • Vegetable Glycerine (Must be Food-grade)*
  • Water
  • Vanilla beans, orange or lemon peel, or flaked almonds

Equipment:

  • Mason jar, jam jar, glass bottle(s)
  • Vegetable knife & chopping board
  • Jug(s)
  • Spoon

Close shot of a large 5 litre bottle of food grade vegetable glycerine.

Vegetable Glycerine

The best way to make flavoured extracts when not using alcohol as a base, is to use vegetable glycerine. Most shop-bought extracts (even Neilson Massey extract ) use a similar base for their extracts. And as mentioned above, is a preservative similar to alcohol and a perfect base for when extracting your chosen flavour. Clear and tasteless ( just slightly sweet), this will not be over-powered by any flavour or scent that an alcohol based extract can often do in the earlier stages.

The vegetable extract however, MUST BE FOOD-GRADE quality. Vegetable glycerine is also used in skin care products and cosmetics, but we need food grade labelled vegetable glycerine for our purposes.


Photo of clear bottles with labels for vanilla, orange, lemon and almond, for day 1 of homemade alcohol-free extracts.

There are a few variations on the quality of food grade vegetable glycerine available , but a glycerine of at least 99.5% vegetable glycerine is recommended.

You can buy food-grade vegetable glycerine online and I found it less expensive to buy in bigger quantities. This meant more extract making, but worked out cheaper than using alcohol as a base for the extract (**As at 08/24).


Close overhead shot of table with glass jug of labelled vegetable glycerine & showing syrup like texture.
Other Ways To Use Vegetable Glycerine

If you do go down the route of buying the vegetable glycerine in bulk size, there are other uses for it. If you want to make your own body wash, you can use glycerine.

Vegetable glycerine, in very small quantities, is used in Royal Icing & helps with the shine & can stop it going too hard. Some add glycerine to cake batter to keep moist. I also used in ganache in my Individual Chocolate Tarts.

There are so many skincare uses for vegetable glycerine. Check this page by Makeyourown.buzz- 12 Great Ways To Use Vegetable Glycerine


Close lower down partial shot of freshly made alcohol free extracts, (labelled vanilla, orange, lemon and almond), with orange one in focus in the fornt.

Water

Some water is needed to dilute the vegetable glycerine. A 3:1 ratio of glycerine to water is used. When you add the water to the glycerine and mix it, you will see a reaction. The vegetable glycerine is hygroscopic, (meaning it attracts and retains water), all allowing for a better absorption of other ingredients – ie. what you want to extract. So don’t forget to add the water – tap water is fine.

Flavouring

This is the fun bit – deciding which flavour or flavours of extract you want to make yourself. Vanilla is a popular one of course and used in so much baking, but is obviously more expensive to make because vanilla beans are not cheap! But then neither is decent vanilla extract either.


Extra close shot of 3 glass bottles, labelled, with orange skin, lemon skin and flaked almond sin each to make alcohol-free extracts.

Some other flavours I have been making are using the peel of oranges or lemons that I already had or eaten/used the contents of & would have just been going in the food waste bin anyway.

A good tip of mine is to freeze the orange or lemon skin in a food bag and use when ready to make extract. No need to cut into thin strips before freezing. Just freeze the skin in a few pieces and when it comes to using for extract, cut and use only the amount you need with no need to defrost.

So with this method, you can start stocking up on the fruit peel while you wait for the vegetable glycerine to arrive.


Pink plate on table, with flaked skinless almonds and whole oranges to the side.

Almond extract is another flavoured extract I have made. There are videos on YouTube of making from almond stones or in fact peach kernels like commercial almond extract is usually made from, but this is a more laborious process. I found using flaked almonds (slivered almonds), much quicker and I always have them anyway in bulk. The almond extract does take longer to come to a level of flavour that you can use, than say the orange extract but you will probably be using almond extract a lot less than fruit extracts or vanilla.


Very close shot of split vanilla beans that were previously submerged in alcohol to make vanilla extract and showing the vanilla pods, with text homemade vanilla extract.

Where To Buy Vanilla Pods?

Like in my alcohol version of vanilla extract, I always advise on the least expensive way to source the vanilla pods and how to make as inexpensively as possible

Buy the vanilla pods online. In-store they are much more expensive with shop overheads and often just 1 to 2 pods in glass jars. Buy online in bulk (and I mean packs of 5 or more) and in vacuum packs that reduces costs and preserves the vanilla pods till ready to use. **Never open a pack if not going to use right away or they spoil.


Table with preperation for making alcohol-free vanilla extract & vanilla packet by VanillaMartUK.

I have bought before from Amazon but just be sure to check feedback before buying there. If in the UK, I highly recommend purchasing from VanillaMart.co.uk. I have bought their Papua New Guinea (PNG) pods and their Indonesian Tahitian pods on numerous occasions with no issues and are free postage and quick to arrive too.

There are vanilla extract groups on Facebook that buy in bulk but they are in the US and work out a lot more expensive and quite an investment too. So just something to consider before committing yourself.


Gluten-free Extract

Aother great reason for making your own alcohol-free extract is it will be gluten-free. Some alcohols are not certified gluten-free (If you want a list of some brands of American/Canadian liquor brands that are gluten-free – see my Vanilla Extract article.)

Vegetable glycerine should be safe for patients with celiac and other gluten-related disorders, provided it is pure vegetable glycerine (containing at least 99% glycerine).


$ glass bottle with homemade alcohol-free extracts and text 'After 4 weeks'.

Recipe Yield

I have given the amounts to make enough for 3 bottles/jars, (where 1 jar has a 1/2 pint/1 cup/240ml capacity). And assuming you make 1 of the 3 with almond (where less liquid is needed). Amounts needed for one flavour are also listed in the Recipe Card below, that you can adjust to your jar/bottle capacity.

Note, the more space what you are extracting takes, the less liquid will be needed.

You can double, or reduce the recipe. Just remember to increase/decrease all parts the same to ensure success.

Yield will be approximately the same as the amount of liquid used.


3 Ikea 150ml bottles with labels and containing orange, lemon peal and flaked almonds, in homemade alcohol-free extract.

How Long Does It Take?

The agreed minimum is 6 weeks to extract enough flavouring. Like with vanilla extract made using alcohol, the longer you leave it to mature, the more the flavour will develop. However, the extraction of flavour will not last forever & the extract will stay good to use, way past when the vanilla pods have stopped giving out the flavour from their caviar.

I have found 8 weeks to be a good time to start using, & is where the flavour of extract had surpassed that of decent extract like Neilson Massey vanilla. **Just note that it won’t be as dark as when using an alcohol base**


Close-Up Photo of an Empty Glass Jar on a White Surface

Equipment

All you need equipment wise is listed in the recipe card below, but really not much and the important ones are measuring jugs and a glass bottle or jar, that will keep air-tight and shake no problem, is all you need. Many fancy bottles can be found in shops and online, or just re-use old jam/jelly jars or mason jars.

**Just note that with fancy tall bottles, you want wide enough neck to be able to get the vanilla beans, or fruit peel in and back out of the bottle when finished. So something to consider.


Small and medium glass bottles with alcohol-free extracts at differnet stages and calander at back with 12 September date.

How To Store The Extract?

Once you have prepared the extract, it is stored in a cold dark place, like a cupboard. Regular shaking of the jar/bottle is recommended, particularly for the vanilla, to help release more of the beans from the pods, and into the glycerine.


Wide shot of smaller and medium sides clear glass bottles with labels, of homemade alcohol free orange, lemon & almond extract at 2 different stages with date 16 October.

Speeding Up The Extraction Process

Look on YouTube or Google and you will find many people advocating a method for speeding up the extraction process. They involve pressure cooking (or using an Instapot) to heat the extract to produce enough extraction, that the alcohol or glycerine, changes colour in a short time. And are then stored until fully extracted in flavour.


Labelled glass bottles of almond, orange, vanilla and lemon alcohol-free extract with calander at the back and showing liquid after 4 weeks.

Whilst this sounds great to speed things up, I can not advise strongly enough on how dangerous this method is. Alcohol, heat, glass jars and pressure, are a recipe for disaster. It is just waiting to happen so would not advise on it. I am however, working on an alternative, less risky and dangerous method.


Wide shot of a small glass bottle with lemon pel and clear vegetable glycerine for extract, with calander behind showing date 15 August.

Extracts Using Water Only

You can make extract with vegetable glycerine & alcohol (a 1:1 ratio), that can half the amount of alcohol required & be less expensive, but oviously not non-alcohoic.

Please don’t try any recipes claiming to make extracts by just using water. You must have a base that works well for extraction, but worst still, using jsut the water, is a breeding ground for bacteria & not good for your health.1


Step-By-Step Instructions

4 photo collage of mixing water and vegetable glycerine for alcohol-free extracts, with text 'photo 1'.

1. Begin by making sure you have clean and dry jars or bottles to use as once you open the packet of vanilla pods, you need to use right away or they will spoil.

**Tip – Place 2 pieces of kitchen paper/paper towel inside while sitting to dry & this helps absorb the moisture.

2. To prepare the vegetable glycerine mixture, add the glycerine to a large jug.

3.Next add in the water & mix together. Watch the reaction.


4 photo collage of adding orange peel and vegetable glycerine mixture to small glass jar, with text 'photo 2'.

4. For the lemon or orange extract, cut the peel into long thin strips.

(**If you froze the fruit peel, just remove from the freezer without defrosting & cut into strips)

5. For vanilla extract, open the vanilla packet and run a small sharp knife along the length of the pods, being sure not to cut all the way through.

6. Then use the tip of the knife to open the pod to expose the beans.


6 photo collage of cutting vanilla pods and adding to alcohol-free mixture in glass bottle for extract, with text 'photo 3'.

7. Once you have your vanilla or fruit peel ready, give the glycerine & water mixture another stir, before pouring into your jar or bottle.

8. Then it is simply a case of inserting the strips of fruit peel or vanilla pods into the jar/bottle. **You can cut the vanilla in half if your jar/bottle is not tall enough.

9. Make sure the vanilla or fruit skin is covered by the glycerine mixture, topping up if needed.

10. For the almond extract, similar process. Just add the flaked almonds (slivered almonds) to the jar/bottle and top up with the glycerine mixture.

11. Close the bottle/jar & give a good shake.


2 photo collage of adding flaked almonds to a glass bottle & topping with vegetable glycerine mixture for extract, with text 'photo 4'.

12. For the almond extract in particular, not long after shaking, you will see the almonds like to settle on the top half of the bottle & my video shows the cool way they end up at the top when suspended in this vegetable glycerine mixture.

13. Label the jar/bottle & with the production date, before placing the extracts somewhere cool and dark, like a cupboard.


Wide shot of a small glass bottle with lemon pel and clear vegetable glycerine for extract, with calander behind showing date 15 August.

14. You want to give the extract a good shake – frequently (every 2 or 3 days in first few weeks) & every week or so thereafter. For the almond extract make sure to do this religiously & even more so if you can.

15. Leave to mature and the flavour to extract for at least 8 weeks. You can start using after that, but leaving longer, the flavour will develop more but not indefinitely.


4 glass bottles, 1 larger with vanilla pods and label, 3 smaller with labels and containing orange peel, lemon peel and flaked almonds, for alcohol-free extract, on day one.

16. You can decant what you want to use, into a smaller bottle, while the rest matures even more. Or give out as gifts or in food baskets.

17. For the vanilla, the pods can stay in the jar/bottle, more vanilla pods & alcohol added to make another batch.

18. For the fruit extract and almond extract, it is advised to discard the contents when the extract is finished.

How Long Does It Last?

Without any contamination, & stored properly, the alcohol-free extract will be fine for up to 4 years2


Comparison Photos

4 photo collage showing alcohol-free extracts day 1 and after 5 weeks showing colour changing from clear.

*Small bottles were at 4 weeks on Day 1 of the larger bottles on top row, & 9 weeks on bottom photo.

**Just note that it won’t be as dark as when using an alcohol base for your extract**


Close partial shot of large bottle labelled 'vanilla', 2 smaller bottles labelled 'orange' * 'almond', with calander date 16 October, for alcohol=free extracts at 4 weeks stage.

Recipes That Use Extract

Use the extract just as you would shop bought vanilla extract, a 1:1 amount, but your homemade version will probably taste better.

Here are some examples of recipes to use your new homemade alcohol-free extracts in:

Vanilla Recipes – cakes like Victoria Sandwich cake, Funfetti layer cake or easy raspberry coconut sponge squares.



More Homemade Treats For Baking

Recipes like pastry cream, concentrated strawberry puree, pumpkin puree or homemade lining paste below:

Very close cropped shot of a small bowl of stewed red rhubarb/compote, served with pastry cream.
White bowl of deep red strawberry puree with strawberries to the background & titled concentrated puree lesson.
Bowl of orange coloured vegetable puree, with title roasted butternut squash puree.
Close shot of a glass jar with biege colours paste inside (cake lining paste/cake goop), next to a fancy bundt pan, with tiled kitchen background and pink cooking utensils holder.

Recipe Card

Non-Alcoholic Vanilla Extract & Fruit Extracts

Partial and close shot front on 4 glass bottle of homemade alcohol free extracts labelled vanilla, orange, lemon & almond, on day one 1 with clear liquid.
Easy to make & only 10 minute active-time recipe for alcohol-free extracts for your baking needs. Try non-alcoholic vanilla, orange, lemon, or almond extract. Let me show you how:
Caro @ Caroline’s Easy Baking Lessons
Prep Time 10 minutes
Extracting Time (inactive) 56 days
Total Time 56 days 10 minutes
Serving Size 48 tsp

Equipment

  • Jug
  • Spoon
  • Knife & chopping board
  • Jam/Jelly/Mason Jars or Bottles

Ingredients

For Alcohol-free Vanilla Extract

  • 4-6 Vanilla Pods
  • 180 ml Food Grade Vegetable Glycerine (¾ cup, 6 fl oz-US)
  • 60 ml Water (¼ cup, 2 fl oz-US)

For Alcohol-free Orange Extract:

  • 1 Large Orange (Peel only)
  • 180 ml Food Grade Vegetable Glycerine (¾ cup, 6 fl oz-US)
  • 60 ml Water (¼ cup, 2 fl oz-US)

For Alcohol-free Lemon Extract:

  • 2 Medium Lemons (peel only)
  • 180 ml Food Grade Vegetable Glycerine (¾ cup, 6 fl oz-US)
  • 60 ml Water (¼ cup, 2 fl oz-US)

For Alcohol-free Almond Extract:

  • 50 grams Flaked Almonds (1¾ oz, ½ cup Almond slices/slivers)
  • 180 ml Food Grade Vegetable Glycerine (¾ cup, 6 fl oz-US)
  • 60 ml Water (¼ cup, 2 fl oz-US)

Orange, Lemon & Almond Extract (3 x 8oz/240ml jars):

  • 1 Large Orange (peel only)
  • 2 Medium Lemons (peel only)
  • 50 grams Flaked Almonds (1¾ oz, ½ cup Almond slices/slivers approx.)
  • 360 ml Food Grade Vegetable Glycerine (1½ cup, 12 fl oz-US)
  • 120 ml Water (½ cup, 4 fl oz-US)

Vegetable Glycerine : Water ratio 3:1

Instructions

Preparing Jar/Bottle(s):

  • Decide which jars or bottle(s) you want to use & clean well. No need to sterilise. Just ensure thoroughly dried first.

Prepare The Vanilla/Orange etc

  • Open the vanilla pod packet only when ready to use, & use a small sharp knife to cut along the length of the pod. Make sure to cut through just one side, & use the knife tip to open the pod, exposing the beans. If the vanilla pod is too tall for your jar/bottle, you can cut in half after you have sliced the pod.
  • For orange or lemon extract, simply save or freeze the peel. (No need to defrost the peel). Slice the fruit peel into slim strips (roughly 3mm, ⅛" thin).

Prepare The Base Mixture:

  • Prepare the extraction mixture by measuring out the food grade vegetable glycerine and the water.
  • Combine & mixing together really well.

Bringing It Together:

  • As soon as the mixture is prepared, add the vanilla pods, orange/lemon peel or almonds, to the clean jar/bottle. Give the glycerine mixture another mix, before adding to the jar/bottle, ensuring that the vanilla or fruit peel is completely covered. Close tightly and give a really good shake.
  • **Note that the flaked almonds/almond slivers will quickly be pulled to the surface by the glycerine. In the video you will see the bubbles & the almonds moving up. Fruit peel will settle towards the top half of the bottle but not as noticeable as the almonds.

Storing:

  • The extract should be stored in a cool dark area like a cupboard or pantry. Leave for at least 8 weeks (almond extract can take longer), but be sure to give a good shake, every other day for the first 2 weeks, then every week. You can shake the almonds more if you can manage.
  • Without any contamination, & stored properly, the alcohol-free extract will be fine for up to 4 years1

Using The Extract:

Video

Notes

Vegetable Glycerine – must be FOOD GRADE vegetable glycerine, and at least 99.5% glycerine.
Making Different Amounts – this is a guide for making extract, but larger or smaller amounts can be made.  Use a 3:1 ratio of vegetable glycerine to water for best results. 
Yield – listed is amounts for making just one flavour extract, or 3 in smaller amounts.  Yield for nutritional purposes is making 8 oz/240ml vanilla extract only.
4 photo collage showing alcohol-free extracts day 1 and after 5 weeks showing colour changing from clear.
Gluten-free – should be safe for people with celiac/gluten-related disorders if puree vegetable glycerine of at least 99% glycerine.
Colour of The Extract – **Just note that it won’t be as dark as when using an alcohol base for your extract**
See information before this recipe card for more details, photos & best way to source vanilla pods as well as recommendations.
Partial and close shot front on 4 glass bottle of homemade alcohol free extracts labelled vanilla, orange, lemon & almond, on day one 1 with clear liquid.

Reference: 1 – How long alcohol-free extracts last, information from TheSpruceEats.com-how to make no-alcoholic vanilla extract

Nutritional Information: I am not a qualified nutritionist and all values are approximate.  Values based on making the amount using all the ingredients listed for making 8 oz/240ml Vanilla extract, where one serving is 1 tsp (teaspoon).  All values calculated on MyFitnessPal.com.
Nutrition Facts
Non-Alcoholic Vanilla Extract & Fruit Extracts
Serving Size
 
1 tsp
Amount per Serving
Calories
17
% Daily Value*
Carbohydrates
 
4
g
1
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Caro x

Alcohol-Free Extracts For Baking – vanilla, orange, lemon & almond

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References:

  1. Health concerns of using only water for vanilla extract, from TheSpruceEats.com -food safety sanitation ↩︎
  2. How long alcohol-free extracts last, information from TheSpruceEats.com-how to make no-alcoholic vanilla extract ↩︎

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One Comment

  1. (5/5)

    5 stars
    What a great idea. Looks so easy plus would make great gifts, homemade is always better. Thank you for sharing.

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