While I know of eggnog’s existence, I have absolutely no idea what is in it (I’m assuming eggs to start), why people drink it, or why they only drink it during the Christmas season. Pumpkin pie at least makes sense to be made during the late fall to early winter period, but what is it about this drink that makes it Christmas-y?
I am not sure why it is associated with the winter months.
As for what it is, and why they drink it, try making some and see what you think. It’s really really easy.
My recipe:
Disclaimer, contains raw egg. If salmonila is a concern to you, I am told you can buy pasturized eggs in a shell but I haven’t actually seen that.
Also, if you like commercial eggnog…this doesn’t take like commercial eggnog. It’s similar but different. It has a mellower creamier flavor and a thinner texture.
Ok you need:
8 eggs separated
1/3 cup sugar
2 Tbs of the best quality vanilla extract or paste you can find (or equivalent fresh)
2 quarts Half & Half
1 pint whipping cream
nutmeg to taste. Fresh is best.
Beat 8 egg yolks until blended and add 1/3 cup of sugar. Stir in the 2 tablespoons vanilla. Then slowly mix in 2 quarts half and half. Set aside.
Whip 8 egg whites to soft peaks and gently fold into the first mixture. Move to serving container. (This step isn’t necessary, but it gives you a nice foam that I personally like.)
Whip 1 pint whipping cream to soft peaks and again fold into the mixture that is in the container.
Add nutmeg to taste and let sit in a refrigerator for 2 DAYS. The waiting period is non negotiable. It’s drinkable before then, but you really need 48 hours for the flavors to settle.
Store bought egg nog… can be yummy, but usually it’s a tad too thick. Best used for making a latte.
Homemade though, especially the type with booze in it? Num! 
Reminds me, need to pick up the four different types o’ liquor that go into the recipe I have. It tastes a lot better when it can sit and age for a few days.
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<< Insert 'liquor? but I hardly know ‘er!’ joke here. >>
Absolutely love it but I can only have it on Christmas Day and the few days after, it feels weird any other time. I once had it in like, June or something, and it just felt so wrong.
I make my own with splenda, since there is way too much sugar in commercial versions. I also don’t have any texturizers or preservatives added.
Oh, and I use eggs from my own chickens =)
I love it, but only a tiny bit of it. I find it too rich to drink a lot of it and usually end up using the rest of the batch I made for my own version of french toast. Therefore, I voted “its okay”.
I like what I call “uncle Lee’s recipe”. It’s regular eggnog with rum, bourbon, AND brandy. Good stuff.
Oh this reminded me. I made eggnog pancakes the other day and they kicked butt.
Standard pancake recipe with an extra egg, added tsp of vanilla, 1/2 tsp of nutmeg and half the liquid replaced with eggnog.
Freakin fantastic.
Homemade eggnog is delicious, and the store-bought stuff is okay. We use pasteurized eggs since we make it for people that are paranoid about raw eggs.
I find it’s much easier to just make a cooked version than to hunt down pasteurized shell eggs.
Meh, I’m a risk taker. I think cooking it messes up the texture and you end up with a thick not all that great end product much more similar to what you would get in a store than what I think of as home made. But if that’s how you roll I won’t fault you, and some people even prefer that style. Know the risks, and make your choices.
I’m a total eggnog whore. I love every homemade recipe I’ve tasted, as well as the dreck they sell in the stores. It’s all good (even if it’s bad).
Store bought egg nog varies a lot. We get the Kroger store brand egg nog. We’ve tried other store’s brand, and more expensive brands, and don’t like them.
We add Southern Comfort usually, but sometimes I add Bacardi 151 rum instead.
I’ve never tasted it but it just sounds gross. I don’t like the idea of drinking eggs, and whatever “nog” is does not sound at all appealing.
I like to mix half Silk Nog and half basic dairy nog, it brings things to a reasonably drinkable consistency, and doesn’t kill me with the lactose. I don’t drink, so for me, it’s a dessert.
Silk Nog is also an awesome coffee creamer. No need to add sweetener, either. I’ve been thinking about buying a bunch and freezing it. I know the carton says not to but I think that’s fear of explosions more than anything.
Yeah, but if you look at the part I quoted, you’ll note it was specifically addressing concerns about salmonella–and if you’re worried about bugs in your nog, cooking’s a hell of a lot easier than trying to find pasteurized eggs, is all I’m saying. That said, I do tend to use the cooked version because the folks I share with don’t always have normal, healthy, adult immune systems. It just seems churlish to deliberately make something the toddlers and pregnant ladies and chemo patient aren’t supposed to have, ya know?
I haven’t had any since I was a wee lad, and it was mom’s homemade version. I think I’ll grab some of the Kroger brand and maybe that Starbucks version this season to test it out before I make any. I do like bourbon and rum as well as milk and eggs, so this seems like a good match. I can’t stand brandy.
I always like a drink that’s a little dangerous.
Yes, absolutely. I am just saying that cooked isn’t quite the same as raw and that there are safe alternatives for raw if you want to go that way.
If you want to go cooked more power to you. It’s less risky and/or easier.
The egg nog that A%P Tea Co made in the 1960’s, was like heaven. Ive never been able to find any egg nog, anywhere, since then that tastes as good as that old A&P egg nog.