When it comes to the holidays, I’ve got a lot of Christmas traditions. I like to make a few treats (like molasses cookies) year after year. I also like to make one non-baked item: Irish cream.
Honestly, the homemade version of this sipper is so delicious. It blows Bailey’s right out of the water. Sure, it’s decadent, but it’s only the holidays once a year.
Plus, it takes only about five minutes to make a batch from scratch. It’s a fun surprise to share on Christmas Eve. I also really like making this recipe with Michael. It’s something fun we can do together to share with our families.
How to Make Homemade Irish Cream
Making Irish cream from scratch is a breeze and you don’t need any fancy ingredients (you might even have some in your cupboard right now!). Here’s what you need:
- 1 cup cream (half and half also works)
- 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
- ¾ cup whiskey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
- ¾ teaspoon cocoa powder
Makes 3½ cups.
A Few Notes on Ingredients
When it comes to the cream in this recipe, I truly don’t taste a major difference when I switch to half and half. Use what you’ve got!
As for the whiskey, do not use your best stuff in this recipe. Irish cream is so loaded with other flavors that you can get away with a bottle from a lower shelf. I use Canadian Club.
But when it comes to the vanilla, I always like to use the good stuff. Nielsen-Massey and Penzey’s are my go-tos.
Directions (It’s So Easy)
Start by whisking together the vanilla extract, cocoa powder and instant espresso powder together. It should make a paste of sorts. The main objective is just to get out any cocoa lumps. If you do end up with lumps though, it is 100% fine! It’ll just be an extra pocket of cocoa as you sip.
Then add in your cream and whiskey. Finally, whisk in the sweetened condensed milk. The milk is pretty sticky and thick, so be sure to whisk it pretty well until you don’t have any gooey stuff stuck on the bottom of the bowl. And that’s it!
For quality control, I like to take a little sip over ice before giving it to friends and family.
How to Store Homemade Irish Cream
When it comes to storing this treat, I just bottle it up in clean jam jars (the perfect size for gifting) and keep it in the fridge.
Unlike the bottled stuff, homemade Irish cream won’t last forever. Drink it by the cream’s best by date.
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