See those gorgeous little bottles in the photo above?
Fifteen years ago, when I worked part time at Reverse Garbage, I brought home 300 of them, complete with lids. They were brand new, French made, and like all items at RG, an industrial surplus that someone was considerate enough to donate rather than discard.
I have no idea what they were originally intended for, but they cost me just 10c each and I’ve used them ever since. Each bottle holds 125ml (½ cup) and they’re the perfect size for our homemade Irish cream. These are the bottles I used to smuggle into swimming practice to share with Cate.
The ones in the photo above however are filled with our newest brew – a dark chocolate and orange cream. It came about because I’d run out of whisky, so I went rummaging through the pantry and found a bottle of Cointreau instead. I’d originally planned to just mention this variation in my IMK round up, but it’s been so well received that I figured it deserved a post of its own. My friend Margot refers to it as “jaffa in a glass”, whereas Bethany and Ali both describe it as “liquid Terry’s chocolate orange”.
- 350ml Cointreau
- 125g good quality dark chocolate (I used Cacao Barry Tanzanie Origin Dark 75%)
- 1 x 395g can of sweetened condensed milk
- 1 x 375g can evaporated milk
- 300ml pure cream (35% fat, no thickeners added)
1. In a small pyrex or ceramic bowl, heat the chocolate in the microwave in 30 second bursts on high until melted, stirring between each round. Stir until smooth. Alternatively, melt the chocolate in a bowl over a small saucepan of simmering water.
2. Pour a small quantity of the Cointreau into a large bowl, then gradually whisk in the melted chocolate, then the evaporated milk, condensed milk, cream and finally the remainder of the Cointreau.
4. Pour the orange and chocolate cream into sterilised bottles (preferably through a sieve to catch any lumps of chocolate), seal tightly and store in the fridge. Best served over ice.
Oh, and as you can see, I’ve found a new use for our little Russian tea glasses!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
This sounds absolutely delicious and I love these cute little bottles!
Thanks Clare! As you know, I love them too! :D
Oh my goodness if it tastes like Terry’s Oranges then I’m sold! I’ve got Cointreau and some dark callebaut….off to the shops I go! That makes me laugh about the poolside milkshakes :)
Chrissy, there is nothing more boring than watching laps! This helped a bit..hahaha
Anything with chocolate and Cointreau has to be good. And RG, one of my favourite bargain spots.
RG really is an Aladdin’s cave, isn’t it? In the end, Pete made me quit – I was spending my entire (tiny) salary on stuff and our house was getting full! :D
Oh my, what a great Xmas gift. If there was to be any left, of course.
Always a problem if I peak too early – I’ve just bought cream to make a second batch because the first two are nearly gone! And I haven’t been drinking them (I’m a bit cream intolerant), everyone else has! :D
Thank you for this recipe. It will be a star in my kitchen & sing forever more
; ))
Hahaha…enjoy! It’s been a big hit here! :)
Sounds quite exquisite, Celia, love…. methinks if I made this I’d had to get myself to swimming daily! : )
Lizzy, thankfully it’s too creamy for me, or I’d be guzzling it all! :)
Love the bottle. This sounds like a great ice cream!
The bottles were my great find of 2000… ;-) I actually think this would be very nice over vanilla ice cream!
G’day Line me up for some of this right now Celia! Sounds great and love the bottles! Cheers! Joanne
Hahaha..will do Jo. I’ll line them up like shots for you.. :)
Jaffa in a glass sounds pretty good to me! What a nifty holiday treat.
It’s nice handing out little half cup bottles – just the right size for a small treat! :)
Celia, this is just too dreadfully tempting! I think of I made this I’d carry one of those little bottles in my handbag and be caught swigging it everywhere – not just at the pool ;)
Beck, what can I say? It’s been done before… ;-)
Wow, I could take up drinking again just for this.
Hahaha…don’t let me derail your good intentions! :)
I’m with Goldenpudding, how perfect to slip into a handbag … ;)
The bottles really are the perfect size, I’ve put all sorts of things into them over the years! :)
OMG, this looks amazing! Will put that on my Christmas list for sure!
Hope you love it as much as all of my girlfriends have!
Mmmm. Would it be too weird to heat it up instead of drinking over ice? Tea with a drop of whiskey tastes good so I wonder if this would be like a hot chocolate with a kick. I’m going to try this using Beth’s Marmalade Gin instead of Cointreau.Need to do a little shopping first as gin and chocolate always in the pantry but can’t remember the last time I bought evaporated milk.
Anne, I reckon it would work warm – you could dilute it with some warm milk too. I don’t buy evaporated or condensed milk ever except for this! :)
Eyes shouldn’t open this wide prior to 5am Ms Celia! Oh BABY this looks good! I can take or leave Irish cream (depending on whether anything else is on offer) but a great orange flavoured booze is right up my alley. “Liquid Terry’s Orange”? I am SO there! A better way to slide gracefully from my chair with a huge smile on my face this Christmas Season I can’t even begin to think about :).
Fran, enjoy! It keeps in the fridge for about a month I reckon (or so the original instructions claim) but I’ve never had it last that long – it’s always been drunk well before that! :)
Steve loves Terry’s Oranges and this wouldn’t last 2 days ;).
OMG. This sounds delicious!
Thank you! It is! :)
Ye gods woman – 300 bottles and another amazing liqueur recipe….I love your style!!! PS. Made the Irish Cream on Sunday, just half a batch to try it out…next time (that’s in a few days) will make double :)
See hon, if I the move and renovate often type, I’d probably not do things like bring home 300 bottles. But they’ll have to pry me out of this house with a crowbar, so I never give a second thought to packing and moving! :) Did Big Man approve of the Irish cream?
Oh he most certainly did :)
Wow!!! Sounds magnificent!
Thanks Mimi! It was delicious, especially over ice!
As soon as I saw the name of this I had to check it out – this is such a unique idea!! And then I read your reference to Reverse Garbage – guess what? I was just there on the weekend! It was my birthday and for my present, I asked my family to come with my to Reverse Garbage and 2nd hand markets to help me find props for photos!! Best investment to date was $4 for 4 tiles to use as backgrounds :) I kept my eye out for jars because I really wanted some but there weren’t any. So I am seething with jealousy that you scored 300 jars!!!
How long do you think this will last? I see this as a great Christmas gift idea….
Nagi, the original instructions I followed said at least a month, but I’ve never had it in the fridge for that long. I plan to make another batch a couple of weeks before Christmas – this batch will be long gone by then! :) Did you visit the Bower as well when you were at the Addison Road centre? I loooove RG! :)
I am sure this would go down very well for Christmas! And those bottles are fab, so handy :)
Tandy, it’s a very festive drink, particularly over ice. Getting quite warm here, how’s it going over there?
Tasty! Jaffa are a kind of cookie, right? I’ve heard of Jaffa cakes but never eaten one. They are not readily available in Southern California. Those bottles need a label. Send me the verbiage and I’ll make one for you if you want. Hugs, Maz.
Darling friend, thank you, but all the bottles have already been given away! I never get the bottles back either – they’re too cute and everyone hoards them – I keep finding them when I open friends’ kitchen cupboards! :)
ha ha ha, next time for sure! :-)
Oh my Celia, BigJ would definitely love this! We have a huge bottle of Cointreau from a gift that we find too strong on its own, so it will be lovingly repurposed into this fantastic deliciousness, thanks – yummo! Xox
Perfect! I’m sure BigJ would love it too! :)
That’s twice this morning I’ve seen reference to making your own alcoholic creams- must be a sign! It used to be my go to present at Christmas to give out and I haven’t thought of them for yonks….thanks Celia :-)
Have fun Brydie! They’re a great Chrissie gift! :)
You are onto a winner here. Fantastic flavours.
The masses certainly think so! Thanks love. I can’t manage more than little sips.. :)
I love the sound of that – Reverse Garbage & what a great idea. Very cute bottles. For that price I would have bought cases of them, but then I get carried away sometimes. This sounds just as good as your Irish Cream & I can’t help but chuckle every time I think of you smuggling your home brew into swimming practice. Wish I had thought of that when my daughter was figure skating (boy those rinks are cold, especially early in the morning!)
We should definitely not go shopping together, Diane. :) I had a friend at school who did figure skating, and I used to go and watch her. It was always freezing at the rink!!
What a find! These little bottles sure did find their way into the right hands and home. If anyone could put them to good use, it is you, Celia. Using them to hold your fantastic cream and bolster your spirits during swimming practice? Inspired! :)
John, it was such a long time ago now, I was much naughtier back then. I’m reformed now. :D
A fantastic drinkable creation & in these lovely cool bottles! A great tasty food gift! x
Gorgeous. Why aren’t you one of my neighbours? You’d totally be my favourite one! How long does this delight last, in the fridge? x
[…] I don’t know what happened to me this year, but I came across this recipe for a chocolate cointreau drink at Fig Jam and Lime Cordial, and for some reason, I made it. And […]
oh wow celia this sounds so delish. i must try making this! happy new year.