Eggnog – Recipes, Ingredients, Styles, etc.

[Jason Perlow]

http://www.rumshop.net/newsletters/december2001.pdf

There are a lot of great recipies for egg nog in Luis Ayala's monthly rum newsletter, link above. You need the free Adobe Acrobat reader from adobe.com to read it.

Here's a recipe for Cuban Eggnog I found on the net that sounds pretty good:

1 cup water

2 cups sugar

1 can evaporated milk

1 can condensed milk

8 egg yolks, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup rum (or to taste)

Combine water and sugar and boil until it becomes syrupy. Let cool. Add both milks and vanilla to yolks. Mix well. Add syrup and rum. Mix well again. Strain all through cheesecloth or coffee filter. Pour into sterilized decorative bottle with tight seal. Refrigerate.

Makes a great gift if you can keep from drinking it yourself!

[Jinmyo]

I'll just take the rum please. Merry Christmas to you too. ;)

(Edited by Jinmyo at 9:39 pm on Dec. 17, 2001)

[stellabella]

Jimmyo, you can have the rum--I'll just take a bath in the nog.

[suzilightning]

i've been using this recipe since 1982 when one of the ladies i worked with at texarkana public library gave it to me(needless to say she was NOT southern baptist).  i actually use only half the alcohol in the original recipe and start the base in october, making a base every two weeks or so until we begin using it around thanksgiving.

6 eggs, separated

2 cups sugar

1 cup bourbon

1/2 cup rum

1/2 cup brandy

2 quarts milk

2 quarts cream

mix the egg yolks with the sugar then add alcohol.  put in a container in fridge and shake every day to redissolve the sugar.  put whites in a separate container and store in fridge.  the base must sit at least a week.  when ready to serve put base in a large punch bowl.  add milk and cream.

beat whites until soft peaks form and fold into the egg nog.  top off with freshly grated nutmeg.

[Kristian]

Which rums do you consider the best for egg nogs, btw?

Personally, I'd probably select one of the kitchen rums and none the good stuff, but I'm open to experiments...

[Margaret Pilgrim]

My husband asked for his first eggnog of the season yesterday afternoon. I gave him our usual single serving concoction:

Beat 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of sugar into 3/4 cup half and half until frothy. Add a half jigger of rum and half jigger of brandy. Pour into a goblet and dust with freshly grated nutmeg.

Don't drink too many during the holidays if you have a cholesterol or weight check scheduled in January.

[Fat Guy]

I was at Stew Leonard's in Yonkers last week and they were giving out samples of regular egg nog and fat free egg nog. They tasted exactly the same. Which isn't to say either tasted good.

[cabrales]

I'm going to get some eggnog latte from Starbucks. It's available only for a limited period. The latter is too sweet for my tastes, and the eggnog is not more than good-minus. However, I like it for some reason.

[Jaymes]

I love eggnog and make it every year. For guests, serve it in a silver punchbowl that has been frozen into a large block of ice around which I've also added bits of holly and other evergreens. And of course, those little silver punchcups.

I also substitute eggnog for milk this time of year when preparing French Toast, bread pudding, tapioca, etc.

If you'd like to try a Mexican version of eggnog, see if they have Rompope at your liquor store... booze already added. Very nice.

Edited December 12, 2002 by Jaymes (log)

[maggiethecat]

I'll arm-wrestle Jinmyo for the rum! As a rule, I don't like my "adult" beverages sweet, rich or dairy.

Maybe a passage from my childhood is the reason. In an attempt to 1)Watch the family weight 2) assure we got some early-morning protein3)Make mornings easier on everyone, my Father went through what my brother and I refer to as The Eggnog Winter.

Every night Daddy would whip up a big batch of "eggnog"...skim milk, light on the sugar, no rum!..pour it into six glasses, dust with nutmeg and store in the fridge. It was breakfast. My siblings and I convinced him to strain out the "egg bitties"(sic), which made it at least drinkable.

But oh so cold. Remember that I waited for the schoolbus in minus thirty temps, in a miniskirt (of course...The tyranny of fashion!)

I've never felt so cold in my life. Musta been the eggnog!

[nightscotsman]

I'm an egg nog fan from way back. I'll even make do with supermarket nog, though some are way better than others. About this time of year Oregon Chai comes out with a "Chai Nog" concentrate that I really like. It has black tea, sugar, honey, vanilla and spices (no eggs or dairy). You mix it half and half with the milk of your choice, steam it or zap it in the microwave, or pour over ice and drink cold. It's good even using skim milk. Haven't tried it will al-kee-haul yet, but a spot of rum couldn't hurt.

[201]

...I'll even make do with supermarket nog, though some are way better than others...

Can you suggest any national brands that you enjoy (or any in the NY metro area)? I love egg nog as well, but I don't drink alcohol so the flavor has to come from just the nog and the nutmeg! I usually enjoy the Southern Comfort or Chipwich brands (whatever happened to Chipwich chocolate milk?), but I'm looking to broaden my search for the best store-bought egg nog.

PS - Yes, I know, I know... I should make my own, but I'm just not at that level yet!

[Jaymes]

...I'll even make do with supermarket nog, though some are way better than others...

Can you suggest any national brands that you enjoy (or any in the NY metro area)? I'm looking to broaden my search for the best store-bought egg nog.

If you get some store-bought, you can improve it considerably by whipping up either some cream, or egg whites, and folding them into your store-bought.

We have a good brand down here, but I doubt you get it there. Just in case, it's "Promised Land Dairy."

And that reminds me. I always get a jug of that each year for a special neighbor. Christmas is sneaking up on me this year, and I hadn't remembered it. So now I have.

Edited December 13, 2002 by Jaymes (log)

[SpicyJenny]

Ah, eggnog! One of the things I look forward to finding in the Publix dairy section. Oh, made from scratch might be alright, but there is something quite nice about just picking it up at the supermarket and lacing it with your favorite rum. In my case, Barcardi amber label. Good enough for store-bought eggnog any day. But, if you want to add some froth, just whip up some heavy cream and add it into the mix. Keep it simple and inexpensive and enjoy. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everone!

Edited December 13, 2002 by SpicyJenny (log)

[Steebles]

Interesting..

Everyone here is mentioning Rum (or brandy), while most people I know use whiskey and say they've never heard of using Rum.

Which is what I use.

mmmmmmm eggnog :)

The Promised Land is really good! (for store bought)

[201]

I don't think I've ever seen The Promised Land, but I'll keep an eye out!

[cabrales]

Steebles -- That is a very nice Avatar you have there.

[Jaymes]

My family has a loooooong tradition of eggnog. And I remember drinking it back some fifty years ago when I was just a very small child. My grandmother made it every year. And into it she put: "1 Cup bourbon for the main taste, 1/3 C rum for flavor, splash of brandy for the kick."

Although the amounts of everything seemed to change year by year according to mood and memory, the main gist of it was always the same. Lots of bourbon, which gave it the main flavor, punched up with some rum, and kicked up with a little brandy.

That's how we've always done it, and it makes the flavor absolutely superb.

I'd recommend it to anyone.

[201]

I had a brand of egg nog last night which was previously unknown to me. It was called something along the lines of Norman Rockwell's Classic Egg Nog and the carton was decorated appropriately with images by Rockwell.

I really didn't like it. It was much too thin and had an odd flavor/aftertaste about it which I could only describe as vegetable in nature... it's very strange to think that one detects a hint of celery in one's egg nog!

[southern girl]

I have given up on eggnog after attending a party where about 40 people became very, very ill from...you guessed it...eggnog! Just give me the rum, bourbon or brandy .

Edited December 15, 2002 by southern girl (log)

[Suzanne F]

In Glorious French Food, James Peterson gives a recipe titled "The Best Holiday Eggnog." To one quart of chilled crème anglaise (made from 3 cups of milk, 9 large egg yolks, 3/4 cup sugar and either 1 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon extract), he adds:

• 1 to 2 cups of straight (not blended) bourbon, brandy, or rum (preferably from Martinique)
  
• and after further chilling, folds in 1 cup of heavy cream, beaten to medium peaks
  
• and garnishes each serving with a little grated nutmeg.
  

Sound pretty good to me -- and it should calm the fears of anyone who worries about raw egg products.

[IsItSoupYet?]

What about boiled custard? I first encoutered this when I lived in Kentucky. Basically, it's eggless eggnog. The stuff I got in Kentucky (and I can't remember the brand, but I did buy it in the supermarket) was great--nice and creamy, almost like vanilla ice cream base. Drank QUARTS of the stuff when it was out, used it on cereal, the whole nine yards.

When I moved to Virginia, I was delighted to find Richfood "Country Custard," but it's thinner and a little more sweet than the Kentucky stuff. Still good though. Boiled custard is definitely a southern thing. Eggnog's okay, but I'd rather have boiled custard.

[Fat Guy]

Today's Ask Yahoo! is about eggnog:

http://ask.yahoo.com/ask/20021225.html

[201]

...I usually enjoy the Southern Comfort or Chipwich brands...

Update for this year: Chipwich is not very good. It's entirely too thin and has serious flavor issues as well. I just picked up some Southern Comfort Vanilla Spice egg nog which mostly seems like a less viscous vanilla pudding. Not exactly bad, but not exactly traditional either.

Turkey Hill egg nog is suprisingly good (to me at least).

[nightscotsman]

I've seen some creamy yellowish liquid called "Advocaat" at local liquor stores. It's described as a "Liqueur from the Netherlands, made of brandy, egg yolks, vanilla and sugar, between 15 and 18 per cent alcohol by volume". Sounds like eggnog to me. Has anyone tried this stuff or know its history?