Crème de Cacao Recipe

1 2/3 cup Tito’s Vodka
1 cup cacao nibs
1 coffee bean
1 vanilla bean

Start by filling a heavy stock pot with water and clipping your sous vide machine* onto the side of the pot. Set the temperature to 135ºF (57ºC). As the water comes to temp, wash an empty wine bottle and remove the labels. Funnel one and two-thirds cups of vodka into the bottle, toss in one coffee bean, then slowly pour in 1 cup of cacao nibs, using your hand as a funnel. Firmly cork the bottle and, when the water is ready, set the bottle down into the pot and set a timer for 2 hours and 15 minutes. When the time is up, split a vanilla bean, scrape the seeds into the bottle, drop in the vanilla bean, shake to combine, and set the timer for 20 more minutes.

Once the infusion is complete, strain the liqueur through a fine sieve to remove the cacao nibs, but reserve the vanilla bean. The last step is straining the liqueur through a coffee filter, then pouring it into a clean bottle and popping in the reserved vanilla bean. If you do not run it through a filter, it will still taste good, but the cacao butter will congeal as soon as your liqueur is mixed with another spirit.

*If you do not have a sous vide machine, follow this Serious Eats recipe instead. You’ll need nine days to make it.