homemade mint extract

i had high hopes for this. i mean, really high. i imagined cups of mint extract, so much that i couldn't give it away, and already had plans for some of it. i imagined finally finding a use for the mint taking over my back patio.

mint extract is just like vanilla extract or any other infusion: soak in vodka for a long time in a dark place. strain. use. same process to make limoncello too (but that will have to wait until next summer).

a couple weeks ago i got started with a small batch. most recipes i read online said 1 pound of mint leaves to 4 cups of vodka. i definitely didn't want to make a whole four cups the first time, so i settled on 1 cup vodka to 1/4 pound mint. i sent jason off to buy some cheap vodka (there's really no use wasting the good stuff on this) while i figured out what kind of mint to use.

selecting the mint was the hardest part. none, not a single one, of the recipes i found said peppermint or spearmint or anything besides "mint." since i have an overabundance of both, i set out to make one batch of peppermint and one of spearmint. so i started cutting. and cutting. and stripping leaves off. and cutting down some more. a quarter of a pound of mint sounds like a lot. it is, but i didn't realize really how much until i finally had about 30 stems cut and stripped.

by now jason was back with the vodka, so i set to packing both sets of mint leaves in pint mason jars. if this sounds easy, it really wasn't. the mint leaves were packed as tightly as possible, leaving just enough room for the vodka to trickle through. i added a cup to each jar, closed it up, and set it on my windowsill to do its thing.

and then i waited. and waited. a full four weeks. every few days i'd give the jars a shake and flip them over. the leaves slowly changed from a bright green to a brown-green and didn't look out of the ordinary (nothing growing or changing weird colors), so i kept waiting and flipping until it was finally time.

i imagined the burst of mint when the jars were opened. i imagined it smelling so strong i'd have to avert my nose. i opened slowly and carefully. and nothing. neither jar really smelled like anything. bummer. but i was still optimistic.

spearmint (L) and peppermint (R) after their soak

until i started straining it. the leaves were fine - not slimy or gross - but the vodka just didn't smell all that minty. still, i forged ahead, straining both jars, using my hands to squeeze the vodka out of the wilted leaves.

right about now is when i knew i was defeated. visions of more mint ice cream. gone. mint candy. gone. mint brownies. gone. all i had left were two cups of green brown vodka. the peppermint had a slightly minty aftertaste and the spearmint just tasted like weeds. weed flavored vodka. gross. and down the sink it went.

strained spearmint (L) & peppermint (R)

now i'm right back to where i started. i have pounds of spearmint & peppermint growing in my backyard. what can i do with it? i can only eat so much mint chocolate ice cream and drink so many mojitos. any ideas?