This homemade Irish cream recipe is a delicious and creamy liqueur made with Irish whiskey and cream. Great added to coffee or hot chocolate or just served on the rocks this rich liqueur is perfect for indulging during the holiday season or making a homemade gift!

Making liqueurs like Kahlua, Limoncello, and Amaretto at home is a favorite of mine. They're all delicious recipes that are incredibly easy to make, full of flavor, and cheaper than storebought with the same, or even better flavor.

This Irish cream recipe is no exception. With just a few ingredients and less than a minute, you can have rich, creamy homemade Bailey's right at home.

What is Irish cream made from?

A blend of Irish whiskey, heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, chocolate syrup, a splash of strong coffee, and vanilla blend together to make this delicious beverage.

I think it's less expensive to make this homemade version simply because I almost always have all of the ingredients except for a bottle of Irish whiskey. So, I'm not going out to purchase things just to make it.

That said, if these aren't ingredients you usually have around, it's probably about the same cost as purchasing a bottle at the store. That said, this is spot-on and delicious.

You can serve this chilled on the rocks (my favorite way), in hot chocolate, in Irish coffee, or even use it to make icing or put in cakes. If you're looking for inspiration, there's tons of recipes that call for this rich liqueur to enjoy year-round, but especially around St. Patrick's Day.

Homemade Bailey's Recipe

This simple recipe is really easy to put together and takes just a couple of minutes.

Irish Cream Ingredients:

Irish Whiskey - any brand will do, but I recommend Jameson whiskey. Chill it for the best results.

Sweetened Condensed Milk - this adds all the sweetness and thickens up the mixture

Coffee - a lot of recipes call for instant coffee granules to add the coffee flavor, but they aren't something I ever have around and we don't like them. So, for this, I put a splash of strong, double-brewed coffee (cooled).

Heavy Cream - you can substitute half and half if you'd like, but don't use milk, the mixture will be too thin.

Chocolate Syrup - chocolate syrup helps provide sweetness and deliciousness.

Pure Vanilla Extract - use real vanilla extract here, not imitation vanilla, for the best flavor.

Homemade Bailey's Irish Cream Recipe

This is a really easy recipe, but to reduce the risk of curdling, there are a couple of steps.

Combine cream, sweetened condensed milk, Jameson whiskey, coffee, chocolate syrup, and vanilla extract in a blender and blend on low for just a minute.

Pour the mixture into sterilized glass bottles with tight-fitting lids.

Make sure you're blending it on low speed, high speed will likely cause the mixture to curdle. I also recommend using chilled whiskey instead of room temp, to help reduce the risk of it curdling the ingredients.

Storing Irish Cream

Stored in an airtight bottle in the refrigerator, this recipe will keep for one to two months. Mason jars are a great solution for storing this, but so are glass bottles with flip top lids, or some pretty bottles like these would be great for gift giving!

Be sure to give it a good shake before serving to mix everything back up that may have settled and separated a little bit in the fridge.

Easy Homemade Irish Cream Recipe Variations

This recipe is perfect as is, but if you want to change things up here are a few suggestions.

Cream - again, you can use half and half for a lighter version, but you can also try coconut cream or perhaps coconut milk... though the milk will probably make the mixture a little to thin (though still delicious).

Extracts - some recipes call for almond extract in addition to the vanilla extract, you can definitely add it if you want, though I don't care for the flavor and try to keep the almond flavors to a nice homemade amaretto.

Whiskey - you can use your favorite brand of Irish whiskey or add some hot damn for a cinnamon-spiced addition, bourbon, or spiced rum could also be tasty in this recipe. Try different liquors if you want to, the taste won't be the same as store-bought Bailey's but that doesn't mean it won't be delicious.

Chocolate - if you find yourself without chocolate syrup, you can mix some cocoa powder in a bit of cream and use that in its place.

More Recipes to Try Next:

• Brandied Cherries
• Brandied Apricot Preserves

If you try this delicious homemade Irish cream recipe, I’d love to hear about it in the comment section below! Also, I’d love if you could leave me a five star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ recipe review on the recipe card below. If you want more recipe inspiration, make sure to follow me on Facebook or Pinterest!