i like Bailey's as much as the next guy, and i pick some up once in a while, but it's not the same as this. incidentally, i've also tried literally every kind of Irish cream liqueur available in any of the four liquor stores around here, and my pick for best tasting, cheaper Bailey's alternative is Carolan's.
since i posted that original recipe lo, these many moons ago, i've made the stuff at least half a dozen times, pretty faithfully to the recipe, though at one point i was using cinnamon extract, which was preferable as it doesn't precipitate to the bottom like powdered cinnamon can. alas, that (rather expensive) elixir has proven elusive (in my usual haunts), and i've since returned to using the powdered stuff- until today, when i came across something that i thought just might do the trick: YS Organic Farms CinnaHoney, cinnamon-infused raw honey. had to give it a go.
so, if anyone wants to make some of this stuff, here's what you need:
at the last minute i decided to throw in a pint of egg nog too, since i had some available, but even though this stuff's delicious, that was a bad move. my blender only fits about half the ingredients at a time, and i have to blend it in two goes, then stir them up in the final container, and that last pint filled my half-gallon container right to the rim (no room for the lid...guess i have to drink some!). so...i made a bit of a mess.
i couldn't remember how much whiskey i used last time, but i knew it was more than i did when i started making this stuff, so this is what i used this time:
3 @ 14oz cans of sweetened condensed milk
1 pint carton of heavy whipping cream
1 pint egg nog (i measured it with the whipping cream carton)
about 1/3 cup of cinnamon-infused honey
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
1 tsp nutmeg
1-2 tbsp chocolate syrup (Hershey's, of course...just there to darken it up a little)
1-3/4 cups Bushmill's single-malt 10-yr Irish whiskey
...and it's good! the cinnamon honey definitely makes a difference, that's stuff's pretty strongly cinnamonic. incidentally, i like the flavor better using the Borden sweetened condensed milk rather than Albertson's store brand, and i've tried the imitation vanilla extract, and i like the real stuff better.
still needs more whiskey...
