Making homemade eggnog is so easy with this recipe, I doubt you’ll ever go back to the store bought stuff!
The flavours of eggnog can also be found in my White Chocolate Brioche Bread and Butter Pudding, perfect for Christmas morning!
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Christmas is the time for all those traditional treats we dream of the rest of the year. So you can imagine how I felt after moving to the UK when I realised that store bought eggnog was nowhere to be found!
But never fear, that’s just the perfect excuse to come up with my own homemade eggnog recipe! It took some work but I’ve come up with one that I’m really excited about.
It’s true Christmas decadence in the best way possible, luxury in a glass! Creamy, smooth and with all of those spices that we associate with the season. This really is Christmas in a glass!
What gives it taste
What I discovered is that key to success is the right blend of spices. Exactly what the right blend is for you might be very personal.
The milk and the eggs are just the carriers of the taste. Cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, and such are what makes it taste like the eggnog we love.
The recipe that I am about to share appeals to my taste. Please feel free to adjust the amounts of various spices to fit your own.
How to make it
- Infuse the whole milk with wonderful spices like cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg and mixed spice.
- Separate egg yolks from egg whites. For this recipe we are only using egg yolks.
- Whip the egg yolks with sugar until pale and frothy
- Combine the egg mixture with the infused milk.
- Strain the eggnog and add light cream, chill.
This homemade eggnog recipe is quite straightforward except for step 4, where you combine the eggs with the hot milk.
What usually happens when we apply heat to the eggs is they get cooked! Our main goal here is to “cook” the eggs, so they are safe to eat but not to end up with a batch of milky scrambled eggs. Trust me it’s very easy to do and happens QUICKLY!
Here is how to avoid that. With your mixer still running slowly add half of the milk to the egg mixture to temper the eggs, blend well. Tempering should prevent the eggs from curdling in the next step.
Serving suggestions
Eggnog is often enjoyed with a dash of alcohol as it cuts through the sweetness, although this definitely isn’t necessary. Brandy is traditionally used, but whiskey and dark rum work well too.
My absolute favourite way to drink eggnog is in my morning coffee. A bit of eggnog can replace both sugar and cream!
Nothing can be more satisfying on a cold winter morning than sipping a cup of coffee with eggnog while watching your little ones lazily eating breakfast by the light of the Christmas tree. Merry Christmas!!
More Christmas drink recipes
Homemade Eggnog
Ingredients
- 4 egg yolks
- 2 cups /500ml whole milk
- ½ cup /100g sugar
- 2 cups /500ml half and half/single cream
- 1 vanilla bean
- ½ tsp nutmeg
- 1 tbsp mixed spice a blend of cassia, coriander seed, caraway, nutmeg, ginger, cloves
- 1 stick cinnamon
Instructions
- Pour 2 cups of whole milk in the heavy bottomed sauce pan, slit open your vanilla bean and scrape out the seeds and add them to the milk, along with the cinnamon stick and the rest of the spices. Heat the milk over a low heat until the milk is hot and steamy and about to boil. You don’t want the milk heating process to happen quickly because the milk needs time to soak up all the wonderful flavours.
- While the milk is getting infused, separate your egg yolks from the egg whites and reserve the egg whites for a different use or freeze them. Whip your egg yolks with sugar in a medium sized bowl until the mixture is much paler in colour and doubled in volume. When your milk is ready take it off the heat and remove the cinnamon stick.
- With your mixer still running, slowly add half of the milk mixture to the egg mixture to temper the eggs, blend well. Tempering should prevent the eggs from curdling in the next step. Then empty the contents into the saucepan with milk and heat through while whisking continuously on low heat. It took mine 2 minutes. Take off the heat, strain through a fine sieve to ensure eggnog is smooth and silky, add single cream to it and chill until cold.
Libbi says
How many people would this serve
vikalinka says
Libbi, it makes 1 litre of eggnog.
Cynthia Miles says
You must sell me a bottle as pictured of your eggnog! Each year my step mother and I had a traditional ritual of having a glass of eggnog and smoking an expensive ladies cigar. Neither of us smoke yet we just adopted this tradition. About 5 years ago there was a misunderstanding causing a huge rift. She admits her defect is being unable to forgive. Recently she admitted this to me, we cried and MUST continue our beloved tradition. So I ask you to name a price so I may present such a lovely bottle of nog this first year of peacemaking.
Fondly
Cynthia Miles
Shawes says
Hi! I like my eggnog really thick. Do you think this would work with heavy cream instead of half and half?
vikalinka says
I haven’t tried but I don’t see why not. Let me know how it goes!
Penny says
In the UK we do have something much better! It is “advocaat” which is actually Dutch but gorgeous! You can buy it in bottles and mix it with fizzy lemonade and you have a snowball – delish! This is quite a traditional drink for Christmas in many UK households!
vikalinka says
Very true, Penny. Advocaat will do in a pinch but unfortunately nothing will replace eggnog for me. 😉
Jon says
Is the mixed spice just equal parts of each individual spice, or are there different ratios for them? Or is mixed spice just a pre-made purchase type deal?
vikalinka says
That’s a good question Jon. Mixed spice is indeed a pre-made spice that is very common in England. Here is what goes into it –
1Tbs ground allspice
1 Tbs ground cinnamon
1 Tbs ground nutmeg
2 tsp ground mace
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground ginger.
If you skip some less common spices like mace it will still taste like eggnog. The main spices that make that eggnog taste are- nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, allspice. Hope this helps.
freydomabroad says
Give it a try, Missy, and let me know how it turned out:-)!
Melissa says
Looks gorgeous and sounds even better. I’m happy about for the cook egg part of it…Will try with my own assortment of spices.