Homemade Irish Cream Liqueur
Cocktails, Holiday, Ingredient primers — By Jessie on February 27, 2009 at 8:49 pm
I learned to cook from my mom, who works a certain kind of magic in the kitchen. Of all the things I’ve learned from her, how to make homemade Irish cream liqueur may not be one of the most practical—but it is one of my favorites.
The short version of this recipe is: Add all ingredients to your blender. Process until smooth. Strain, bottle, and refrigerate. Drink within one month.
Read on to see what I did, step by step. Because I don’t like to fill my blender to the top, I thoroughly blend all the ingredients but the whiskey first—then add the booze and pulse the blender quickly to incorporate it.
Homemade Irish Cream Liqueur: What can I do with it?
Here are some serving suggestions:
+Serve straight up or on the rocks (to enjoy it in its blissfully natural cocktail state).
+Make a decadent milkshake with good vanilla ice cream and Irish cream.
+Shake up your own house cocktail with a mixture of Irish cream, Kahlua, Amaretto, or Frangelico.
Homemade Irish Cream Liqueur: How long will it keep?
This liqueur should keep for about a month if properly refrigerated. It will naturally separate in the fridge. Just shake it up before serving.
All that said, use common sense: If it looks or smells funky, toss it.
Homemade Irish Cream Liqueur: Bottling your liqueur
Use any food-safe bottle that you like. Just wash it well with hot, soapy water. I used a couple of glass Perrier bottles.
Homemade Irish Cream Liqueur: A note on raw eggs
This recipe does include raw eggs. You can leave them out if you like, but your liqueur won’t be as creamy or thick. It’s entirely up to you.
Here’s the official, obligatory warning: Consuming raw or undercooked eggs, beef, fish and/or poultry may increase your risk of food borne illness, especially if you have certain medical conditions.
OK! On with the liqueur making!
Irish Cream Liqueur
Half of a 750 ml. bottle of Jameson’s Irish whiskey (or any Irish whiskey you like)
1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk (NOT evaporated milk…see the link in Kel’s comment below)
1 cup heavy cream
4 eggs
2 Tbls. chocolate syrup
2 tsp. instant espresso
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract
Gather together your ingredients.
Put the condensed milk in your blender.
Pour in the cream.
Crack the eggs into a small bowl.
Fish out any little bits of shell, if there are any. Then add the eggs to the blender.
Add the chocolate syrup.
Toss in the instant espresso powder.
Add the vanilla and almond extracts.
Cap your blender and process ’til smooth. The condensed milk is pretty thick. It may take a minute or two for it to distribute completely.
You want it to be uniform in color and consistency, like this:
Pour in the whiskey.
Cap your blender again and blend well.
Set a strainer over a bowl and pour the liqueur through it. (Just in case there were any bits of egg or espresso that didn’t blend completely.)
Set a funnel in the mouth of your bottle.
Ladle the liqueur into the funnel to fill the bottle.
Cap and pop into the fridge. If you’re giving it as a gift, tie a little label on it (along with a “made-on” date and a “use-by” date that’s 30 days out.)
Serve straight up or shake up in your favorite cocktail. Your liqueur will keep for about a month in the fridge.
Cheers!
Related posts:
- 12 Last-Minute Homemade Holiday Gifts Ho, ho, ho! So, if you’re like me this year,...
- Boozy Italian Coffee Infused with Chocolate Whipped Cream So, say I was *actually* mouse-sized. (I’m not saying...
- Guinness Recipes for St. Patrick’s Day Happy St. Patrick’s Day from Boston! Now, cans of...
- Homemade Garlic Mayonnaise (a.k.a. Aioli) I have another confession to make. When I was...
- Rustic Veal Flank with Whiskey Cream Broth By now, you guys probably know about the great...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
Tags: cream, drinks, eggs, mom, whiskey
Tweet This
Digg This
Save to delicious
Stumble it
RSS Feed
60 Comments
I learned something new today, this looks good and it reminds me of eggnog!
Yay!
It’s a similar kind of thing.
+Jessie
Irish cream is one of my favorite things, thanks for showing me how to make it!
Oh gosh! I’ll bet you’ll love this then! Give a holler and let me know what you think if you try it.
+Jessie
This looks and sounds great – Jessie.
I will have to try it for St.Patty’s Day with my Greenie Beanies.
Thanks, Bunny! OK, but wait! WHAT is a Greenie Beanie, please?
+Jessie
That’s excellent that you can make your own Irish cream! Definitely something to try one day.
Wheee! Give it a whirl. It’s SO good!
+Jessie
This is such a cool idea!
Thanks, Teri!
+Jessie
How cool is that! What a great gift that would make!
Thanks, Heidi! Hehe, we tend to give out bottles of this around St. Patty’s Day, and it’s always well received!
+Jessie
Great idea, always good to learn something new. I have something to try out this weekend! I enjoyed this!
Thanks, Jeff.
Hope you liked it!
+Jessie
Great idea. I would imagine the whisky would kill off anything harmful from the eggs.
Thanks, Courtney!
Ya know, you’d think that, but it’s not quite right. Heat is actually what kills the creepy crawlies inside eggs that can make you sick.
If you’re worried about it, leave the eggs out, or use pasteurized eggs.
Cheers!
+Jessie
never made any form of liqueur at home..this looks pretty simple..its in my to-try list!!
Oh fantastic! I hope you like it!
+Jessie
We just had “whiskey night” and barely touched the bottles of whiskey we bought. I will be making a bottle of this shortly! Looks excellent!
Oh yay! Let me know what kind of whiskey you use?
+Jessie
Mmmmmmmmmmilk shakes. What a great idea! Thank you for sharing the family recipe. ;o}
Hehehee…my sentiments exactly! (And you’re welcome!)
+Jessie
Thanks for the inspiration! I just whipped up a batch of this, and WOW – it is incredible! It is so fresh and creamy in a way the the bottled stuff will never be. But watch out – it makes a lot – about 6 cups. Next time, I think I’ll halve the recipe and make it with half & half, to thin the consistency out a bit. I think I doubled the chocolate and espresso – it’s nice to be able to make it to your own taste! I’ve blogged about it over on my blog too. http://tinyurl.com/aaltee
Oh fabulous! I’m so glad you liked it! I totally agree…store-bought can’t touch homemade.
Let me know if you try it with half & half. I’m curious about how it is. Another way to get around the richness is to thin it out with a little milk in your glass. A friend of ours does maybe half Irish Cream and half regular milk.
Cheers!
+Jessie
this sounds great! any suggestions on where to obtain those great green bottles?? Thanks!
Hehe, thanks Rhonda! The bottles are actually glass Perrier bottles with the labels scrubbed off.
+Jessie
JUST made a cake with Bailey’s…this wouldv’e been good to know. Noted and filed!
Whoa. Cake with Bailey’s?!? Now I’ll bet THAT’s good!
+Jessie
Making your own Irish cream liqueur sounds like fun.
Fun to make and more fun to drink.
+Jessie
this is wonderful and beautifully photographed! I had to post on your blog today for my edible crafts column at craftgossip.com (you can see the post at ediblecrafts.craftgossip.com). thanks for sharing! meaghan
Oh gosh, thank you so much!
+Jessie
Uhhh….yum. I am sitting here at gymnastics and all I am craving is Irish Cream. I will definitely be making this for St. Paddy’s day. Might even make it green like a Shamrock shake.
Wheee! Oh oh! If you make it green, would you send me a picture? I’d love to see that!
+Jessie
mmmm jameson, my favorite
This looks great! I have no probs with raw eggs, but I’m (way too unfortunately) sensitive to caffeine. Do you think leaving the espresso out will destroy the intended flavor?
-emily
Chicago Dining Examiner
Hmmmm…..OK, how about decaf instant espresso (or is that trace amount still too much)? I haven’t had it, but found that Cafe Bustelo does make a version: http://tinyurl.com/cnyonf OH or maybe add a little coffee liqueur (w/o caffeine). How about either of those? Honestly, I think it’d probably still be really good without it.
+Jessie
I love this and just linked to it on my blog, let me know if you want me to change anything!
NAOmni
Oh gosh, thanks so much NAOmni!
+Jessie
Yum! Sounds really creamy and sweet with the condensed milk.
Thanks Arwen! It’s totally creamy.
+Jessie
http://www.slashfood.com/2006/05/12/condensed-milk-vs-evaporated-milk/
A handy URL to explain the difference between condensed milk and sweetened condensed milk. It’s probably best to clarify, in case someone should happen to mistake the two.
This recipe needs the sweetened variety.
Oh, brilliant! Thanks so much for the link.
+Jessie
Please use pasteurized eggs in this recipe. You can get pasteurized shell eggs at the grocery store. The extra cost is really worth it.
Alcohol does not kill pathogens.
Contamination can be inside the egg. Pasteurization kills it.
This is especially important for anyone with a weakened immune system — any kind of illness (even a cold) or chronic condition.
It is just not worth it to take a chance as food poisoning is largely preventable with proper ingredients and safe handling practices.
That aside, thanks for the recipe. It looks wonderful.
Thanks so much for the thorough reply–and for reiterating my warning about raw eggs!
Personally, I prefer to use raw eggs. A lot of folks won’t be comfortable with that, and that’s just fine. I’m sure pasteurized would work as well.
In the end, it’s up to everyone to make the choices that they’re comfortable with. (You are, after all, responsible for your own skin.)
Cheers!
+Jessie
LOVED this recipe! you inspired me to post this in honor of st.patty’s day
thanks for the delicious idea
You mention this recipe follows the “short” way, i like to do things the long traditional way…is there a long way?
Also to circumvent the egg issue wouldn’t it be possible to mix the non-alcohol ingredients as you did then use a double boiler or other method to bring the mixture to 120F to pastuerize it and then let it cool before adding the whiskey? One of my hobbies is cheesemaking and i have pots i use in the process for slow even heating of milk and cultures that would be ruined should i heat over direct flame. Oh…and wouldnt heating the egg to pastuerize be the same process as making hollandaise?
I can think of a few ways to use the egg but not have to worry about bacteria or added cost of pastuerized eggs. I’m just not sure if the texture would be ruined by “cooking” the egg.
Hey Jenson,
Thanks for stopping by! OH, when I was talking about the “short version” at the beginning of the article, I just meant that I was giving a summary of the instructions that followed.
In terms of pasteurizing the eggs, I bet you could totally heat the non-alcoholic ingredients first, as you suggested. Not sure how it would affect the texture/taste, but I’d be willing to try it next time I make this. You’d want to heat them slowly, and stir constantly, so you don’t scramble the eggs.
On a totally different note, I’d love to know more about your cheesemaking! I’ve always wanted to try that.
Cheers!
+Jessie
This looks great, I plan on making it tomorrow, I’ll let you know how it goes. One question: what are pasteurised eggs? I do a lot of baking, and I’ve never seen or heard of them. Can you get them outside of the US?
Hi Jessie,
Tonight I get to inaugurate some Kahlua that I made, and making some Irish creme was next. I liked your recipe, but dont get how Bailyes has a forever shelf life and yours has 30 days. I am guessing the eggs are part of the problem, and I dont want to not include them, as it just seems right to chuck them into the blender. But I dont want to have to guzzel the stuff at the end of the month either.
Any suggestions?
I saw this on NPR today — they made eggnog and added Salmonella, then tested to see if the alcohol kills it. http://www.sciencefriday.com/videos/watch/10262
Apparently after 3 weeks all of the salmonella is gone
that link is the right one – the first one wasnt :p
This is delicious! Thank you! It is the perfect present for my friend.
Oh fantastic, so glad you like it! Let me know how it works out for you!
+Jessie
is it possible to extend the life if put in freezer and defrosted in fridge?
no question is dumb if you dont know the answer.
Hmmmm, ya know, I honestly have never tried to freeze it. I think it would certainly keep, but you might have consistency/texture issues. I’m wondering if the eggs would get a kind of funky texture.
If you try it, I’d only freeze a very small amount to test it, just to be safe. Let me know how it goes?
+Jessie