I never knew how easy making homemade Irish Cream would be! I have four cocktail recipe books, but I went with Deb Perelman’s Smitten Kitchen recipe because Deb promised on her blog it would be quick and easy.
As usual, she wasn’t fibbing.
Although it came out a little lighter than it was the pictures on Smitten Kitchen (next time I’d add the optional coffee for color), I was so proud of myself for finally getting around to trying this before the twelve days of Christmas were over that I had to instagram it.
While I (just) managed to make this during the holiday season, it’s all gone and it’s time to make more. It’s a good February drink, because bathing suit season is still so far off and we’re well over those pesky New Year’s resolutions, too. And Irish Cream is also a good drink for March, because (of course) St. Patrick’s Day!
This time, I’m going to try a slightly more complicated recipe from one of my drink cookbooks, Homemade Liqueurs and Infused Spirits by Andrew Schloss. It calls for cacao nibs, which I’ll have to look for.
I wish I had had some Irish cream left this week, to go with my audiobook of Faithful Place by Tana French. All those Irish accents! The narrator, Frank Mackey, takes his whiskey straight, though. Though over all a very sad story, like all the Dublin Murder Squad books I’ve read so far, it has plenty of dark humor. Faithful Place has a scene in a pub where the brothers in a gathering of siblings are embarrassed to order the sissy drink their sisters want, a “babycham”. I had to look this up to see what it was:
How Babycham Changed British Drinking Habits
Happy Weekend Cooking!
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That looks delicious! I’ve made several of the various liqueurs in Andrew Schloss’s book and they’ve all been terrific, so if and when I try to make Irish cream, it will most likely be with his recipe.
Thank you! I’ve only made a chai/cinnamon liqueur from the Homemade Liqueurs book, so far, but it was good! His recipe isn’t that different from the Smitten Kitchen recipe but I think the cacao nibs will add a layer of flavor.
Oh wow. I’ve made fruit-flavored vodka before but never Irish cream. I may have to try this. And you’re right, now’s a *great* time to indulge.
This sounds rather fun-I have never experimented with alcohol before. Perfect for cold days.
And I happened to have just the right amount of whiskey left in that Bushmill’s bottle to be able to reuse the bottle, which made it even easier.
It lasted a few weeks in the fridge, but we drank it up pretty quickly!
I had never heard of Babycham before, and the article was very informative. I’ve had my own versions over the years, making fruit wines, bottled too soon and still fizzy! Now I want to try homemade Irish cream, and with the cacao nibs.
I hadn’t heard of Babycham before, either, but judging from the book’s main character’s opinion of wine coolers, I figured it was something along those lines! I’ve never tried making wine before, and I don’t think I ever will!
The article about Babycham was quite entertaining — my British friends actually drink Scotch, so I wasn’t aware of it. Reading historical fiction can go very strange places.
best… mae at maefood.blogspot.com
It looks wonderful! I’ve never made my own Irish cream but I love the flavor
Yum. I enjoyed the education on Babycham. Do they sell it in the US?
It looks so creamy!