By Emry Trantham
I grew up drinking just two special holiday beverages: hot chocolate and Russian tea. Not together, of course. But those were the only two drinks I ever associated with the holidays.
When I got married, however, my husband mentioned that he loved eggnog. I had never learned to like eggnog, and in fact considered the creamy stuff in the red and green cartons something to be avoided at all costs. If they really wanted us to like eggnog, then why in the world did they give it such a name? What are we supposed to think when we hear that? Mmmm, nog. Nog with eggs. Even better! (Actually, no one is sure how eggnog got its name, but there is a theory that it has something to do with small wooden cups called “noggins.”)
In spite of my reservations toward the name, I decided to try some eggnog. Since I like to make things myself, I quickly moved from buying it to creating my own eggnog recipe. It’s simple to make, and back when our chickens were younger and producing more eggs than we could eat, it was a great way to use them up. Homemade eggnog has become a tradition, so now we’ve added one more special holiday drink recipe to our repertoire.
Homemade Eggnog Recipe
Supplies
- blender or mixer (I use this one with a wire whisk attachment)
- heavy-bottom pot
- whisk
- thermometer (preferably instant-read like this)
- pitcher
Ingredients
- 6 organic, cage-free eggs
- â…“ cup organic sugar (find organic cane sugar here)
- 3 cups organic milk
- 1 cup organic whipping cream
- ½ tsp vanilla (find organic vanilla extract here or learn to make your own vanilla extract)
- ¼ tsp cinnamon (find organic ground cinnamon here)
- ¼ tsp nutmeg (find organic ground nutmeg here)
Directions
- Crack all of your eggs into the mixer bowl. Whisk for a few minutes until the eggs are well-blended. Add sugar, then slowly add in the milk and whipping cream, mixing all the while. Mix until everything is a uniform color and consistency.
- Pour the mixture into your heavy-bottomed pot. Place over medium heat. Make sure you grab your whisk – you’re going to be using it. You need to stir the eggnog constantly because it is quick to burn at the bottom.
- Your goal is to heat the eggnog up to 160°. Why 160? That’s how warm it needs to be to make sure it’s safe to consume the eggs. Not all recipes require you to cook the eggs, but I always prefer to take the extra precaution and make sure I’m preventing any food-borne illness. It takes from 15-20 minutes to heat the eggnog up enough to make it safe without causing it to solidify. A food thermometer is the best way to make sure your eggs are cooked enough, but if you don’t have one, test your eggnog on a spoon. When the mixture leaves a thick coating on the spoon, it is ready.
- Add the remaining ingredients. First, add the ½ tsp of vanilla and whisk well. Next, add the ¼ tsp of cinnamon and nutmeg, and again, mix well.
- Pour the mixture into a pitcher and store in the refrigerator. Eggnog isn’t a beverage that’s meant to be served warm, so cool it in the refrigerator. It will take at least six hours for the homemade eggnog to cool properly, but it’s best to plan ahead and leave the eggnog in the refrigerator overnight.
Eggnog Recipe Additions
We don’t use alcohol in our eggnog, but spiking your cup with a little bit of bourbon can help warm you up on a cold holiday evening. If you don’t like bourbon, you could instead add brandy or dark rum.
How about you?
Do you enjoy eggnog? Do you have a special way of fixing it?
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I just made it but it’s awful liquidy. I hope it thickens up when it cools down…
I just finished making this for the first time! I couldn’t resist trying some right away even though it is warm.
I had to make this in a dairy free version- 3 1/4 c canned coconut milk and 1/4c coconut cream (since I happened to have that much open and available… The canned coconut milk is pretty thick anyway).
So far it’s delicious!! It looks a bit like a custard but I realized near the end that my oven was still hot from making sweet potato fries and it made my egg solidify a tiny bit. It’s like little flakes but the texture is still smooth.
I am super excited to try this when it’s fully chilled!! I’ve been dairy free (for my intolerant children/nurslings) for close to three years and I always miss egg nog around the holidays. Thanks for posting a recipe that I can use! I would gag if I made it with raw eggs only lol
I’m from New Orleans like your recipe for egg nogwill try it tis holiday season. Now I use eggyolk sugar vanilla cinnamon just like you but we use the egg whites to make the nog .Beat egg whites add sugar slowly until whites form stiff peaksplaceon top of creamy warm mixture sprikle with nutmeg serve warm.add a little spirits .the nog is the egg whites Happy Holidays
I’m wondering if anyone has found and had success with a dairy-free eggnog recipe. Maybe using coconut or almond milk? My husband loves eggnog but we’ve had to go dairy free this year because of my son’s allergy.
I have tried substituting coconut milk and it is YUMMY.
I’m looking forward to trying this recipe! I’d found a few eggnog recipes but the eggs were raw; even if the eggs were safe to eat raw, I can’t get past drinking raw eggs in my head, YUCK! Thank you!
Sounds very good. I never cook my eggnog, though. My eggs are from a local farm and I don’t worry about them. However, cooked eggnog is delicious.
I also have a personal recipe for rum flavor. Mix nutmeg and vanilla into vodka and steep in a warm place for a few weeks at least. It tastes exactly like rum, but is not nearly as expensive, and has no additives.
I will make this without nutmeg or cinnamon. It’s called boiled custard, and is only available in the south. I live in Texas and have never been able to find it here, so I really want to try this.
That sounds really good! I think I’d like it without the nutmeg.
Thank you so much for posting this! I’ve been looking everywhere for a good eggnog recipe (especially when buying it is SO expensive!) and this is just perfect!