Homemade Irish Cream Liqueur

Homemade Irish Cream Liqueur makes an amazing gift and tastes better than the real thing! It’s perfect for celebrating the holidays, St. Patrick’s Day or enjoying a nightcap anytime. 

About this Homemade Irish Cream Liqueur recipe

Ireland is a magical place. I was lucky to visit and the two things that stick out most to me about that trip, and Ireland in general, are the scenery and the food.

Ireland is just gorgeous. If it’s not on your travel radar, it totally should be. The countryside is a lush emerald green you’ll never forget — a pretty exact match to that specific shade of St. Patrick’s Day green. My favorite sight was the Cliffs of Moher: steep cliffs overlooking a sea of crashing waves.

And oh gosh, the food. Everything from Irish whiskey to shepherd’s pie to the dark stout beer to the Irish cream liqueur is worth writing home about. In fact, Irish cream is so good, it’s worth making at home too.

It’s an amazing, creamy blend of Irish whiskey mixed with cream, and it has layers of flavor with notes of coffee, chocolate and vanilla. It’s divine mixed in drinks, stirred into coffee or simply sipped as it is. However, this homemade Irish cream recipe is even better than the store-bought kind! You are going to love it.

More homemade liqueur recipes: Infused Vodka • Caramel Vodka • Cape Velvet Liqueur • Milk Tart Liqueur • Cinnamon Whiskey

Why you’ll love this recipe

You’ll love this homemade liqueur recipe, for a few reasons:

• This Irish cream is thick and creamy — and packs a real punch.
• It’s simple to make at home with easy-to-find ingredients.
• You can use it to mix into drinks like Baileys iced coffee or sip it as a nightcap.

Homemade Irish cream also makes a great holiday gift, housewarming gift or hostess gift. I love to jar it up and share it with friends for Christmas. And, of course, this Irish drink is hands-down the best St. Patrick’s Day drink. You’ll definitely want to stock up on the ingredients every March.

History of Irish cream

Baileys Irish Cream is a brand name we all know — and it’s also the origin of all Irish cream. It was created by Gibley’s of Ireland as a marketing effort to combine Irish dairy with Irish whiskey.

Now owned by liquor conglomerate Diageo, this creamy liqueur is manufactured in Dublin, Ireland and Mallusk, Northern Ireland.

According to Baileys, approximately 200 million liters of Irish milk from family-owned farms are required for its production. (That’s apparently enough to make about 3.3 billion Baileys milkshakes!)

And here’s a fun fact: It’s Baileys Irish Cream, not “Bailey’s Irish Cream” — there’s no apostrophe in Baileys!

Ingredients

I remember the first time I tried Irish cream liqueur. My mom sometimes serves it as an after-dinner drink over ice, sometimes as a splash in coffee.

The first sip was as magical as that first trip to Ireland. Irish cream is a sweet liqueur you can sip on its own or mix into cocktails. It’s smooth and creamy with a hint of chocolate and coffee.

And you’ll taste that in this homemade Baileys recipe, as it calls for both coffee and cocoa. All you need are a few ingredients, most of which you might already have at home. Here’s what you’ll need:

• unsweetened cocoa powder
• fresh espresso, strong coffee or instant espresso powder ^*
• heavy whipping cream
• sweetened condensed milk
• vanilla extract ^*
• Irish whiskey, such as Jameson

Substitutions & variations

Try one of these variations on homemade Baileys Irish cream:

Simple shortcuts: You can use chocolate syrup instead of cocoa powder, but keep in mind that it might be even sweeter. If you don’t want to brew coffee, use a scoop of instant coffee granules dissolved in water.

Non-dairy: You can make this recipe dairy-free by swapping the heavy cream for a non-dairy milk. Coconut cream is thick like heavy cream. Almond milk tastes great too.

Non-alcoholic: If you like, you can swap in a zero-proof whiskey like Ritual whiskey alternative ^*. Just use the same amount as you would Irish whiskey. For a low-alcohol version, use half Irish whiskey and half zero-proof spirits.

Irish cream syrup: You may have heard of the Irish cream cold brew drink from a famous coffee shop. There’s no alcohol in it, but it does use Irish cream syrup which is flavored with coffee, cocoa and vanilla to resemble the famous liqueur. It’s a great way to enjoy a little Irish cream flavor in your coffee without any booze.

Instructions

If you’ve ever purchased it, you might be shocked to know how easy it is to make homemade Irish cream liqueur! We already know I love making cocktail ingredients like spiced rum and simple syrup from scratch, and this is no different. Here’s what to do:

In a 1-quart pitcher or mixing bowl ^* with a spout, whisk together the cocoa powder, vanilla extract ^* and espresso until no clumps remain.

Then whisk in the sweetened condensed milk, then stir in the heavy whipping cream.

Finally, stir in the Irish whiskey until it’s fully combined. It may be bubbly, but that’s okay and the bubbles will dissipate in time. Chill for 1 hour before enjoying to let the flavors infuse.

Storing homemade Irish cream

Pour or decant the cream through a funnel ^* into a 1-quart carafe or bottle, or portion it up into smaller jars with tight-fitting lids.

To store homemade Irish cream, keep it covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. If the date on your cream is shorter than that, use that as the date to finish your liqueur by — if you don’t drink it all first! If it begins to smell or taste weird, it’s time to toss it.

Some settling may occur as it sits, which is normal. Shake or stir it back up again and you’ll be good to go.

How to drink Irish cream

Irish cream is delicious on its own. Use a rocks glass and pour the Irish cream over ice, then take a sip!

You can also enjoy it neat, meaning without ice. Since this homemade Baileys is chilled, the ice isn’t totally necessary.

Irish cream cocktails

If you like Irish cream, you’ll love mixing it into cocktails. This homemade version is so thick and creamy and really elevates a lot of recipes.

Coffee drinks: Baileys and coffee go so well together. Add a splash to your weekend morning coffee to give it a creamy, boozy boost, or use a little bit in Irish coffee. If you’re not a coffee person, try a Baileys hot chocolate instead.

Dessert drinks: It’s also a key ingredient in many dessert drink recipes, like the nutty Irishman drink, the mudslide cocktail or a peppermint white chocolate martini. You can even use it to make a Baileys White Russian or a chocolate martini chocoholics will love.

Party recipes: For a party, try it in Baby Guinness shots or even a round of Irish coffee Jell-o shots!

Culinary uses for Irish cream

Because it is so sweet and creamy, Irish cream also works well in dessert recipes or drizzled over treats like vanilla ice cream. There are just so many ways you can enjoy it! Whatever you choose, it’s bound to stir up some of that Irish magic.

Baking recipes: You can use Irish cream to make this decadent Irish cream fudge or mix it into Baileys chocolate chip cookies.

Boozy whipped cream: You can whip Irish cream into whipped cream to make Baileys whipped cream. It’s so good on desserts like a slice of chocolate pecan pie!

Icing: Irish cream makes a delicious addition to icing for cakes and cookies. Bake up some Irish cream-glazed Guinness donuts or spread Irish cream frosting onto a chocolate Guinness cake.

Tips & tricks

In the past, I’ve used instant espresso powder ^* to make Irish cream, but one day I was out so I started making it with fresh-brewed espresso. It makes for a much stronger coffee flavor, plus the liquid helps to thin out the thicker viscosity.

Here are some other tips and tricks for making this recipe:

• Buy the freshest cream you can find on the shelves so your Irish cream lasts longer.
• Use quality ingredients. If you splurge on cocoa powder, vanilla extract, Irish whiskey or coffee, you won’t be disappointed.
• Whisk in the cocoa powder really well so there are no lumps. It helps to sift it beforehand or use a dusting wand to shake it in as you stir.

FAQ

More DIY liqueurs

If you like infusing alcohol, try one of these homemade liqueur recipes.

• Limoncello
• Vanilla Vodka
• Salted Caramel Whiskey
• Coffee Liqueur