How to Make Coffee Liqueur at Home
You can make coffee liqueur at home for a fraction of the cost of Kahlua. It is a simple recipe that you’ll enjoy; and it makes a great gift too. When I gave mine out last Christmas I labeled it “Homesteader Hooch“, just to give my family a laugh. Well everyone loved the coffee liqueur and asking if they’ll be more this year!
This should store for more than a year if kept in a cool, dry, cabinet. Well that is assuming it lasts that long.
Make Coffee Liqueur – Ingredients
- 2.5 cups of pure cane sugar
- 3 Tablespoons of instant coffee
- 1 Tablespoon of pure vanilla extract (no imitation)
- 4 cups of water, preferably filtered
- 2.5 cups of a good quality vodka, but doesn’t need to be the most expensive
I have also heard that people make it with rum, which sounds good; but I haven’t tried this myself.
Make Coffee Liqueur – Steps
- Add water, sugar, and instant coffee to a pan
- Bring to a boil, stirring often
- Reduce to a low simmer for 1.5 hours (this will reduce by about half)
- After the 1.5 hour simmer allow the liquid to cool completely
- Once completely cooled add in vodka and vanilla
- Stir
- Bottle (make sure you sterilize your bottles and lids)
- Label and decorate to your liking
- Enjoy a little glass of the leftovers over ice with cream. 😉
This recipe will make about 45 oz of coffee liqueur. Super easy to double or triple, as needed, for gifts. To decorate my bottles I used circles cut from grocery store paper bags as a topper and tied that down with some natural raffia. My bottles were just regular mouth Ball Pint Jars but you could try easy cap bottles for a dressier look.
Looking for more homemade gift ideas? Give these a try!
Spice Rubs
Homemade Vanilla Extract