Well, it happened. Walking outside this morning felt like an army of Dementors invaded sometime overnight, and now we all have no choice but to be chilled to our cores for the next six months or so. This may be great news for all you outdoorsy, snow-boarding/skiing, dog-sledding, folks; you’re one step closer to being able to do all of your questionable winter activities. For the rest of us who aren’t one whale hunt away from being an Eskimo, this means the time has come where we will try our best to spend the next five to six months under a couple of blankets drinking hot cocoa. On the up side this also means that we’re reaching the holiday season. So, while you’re huddling for warmth and cursing the snow gods, you’ve at least got friends, family, and good food and drink to look forward to. One of my favorite things to make around the holiday season is eggnog. Of course, you can go buy a jug of it from one of the million businesses that sell it this time of year, but where is the fun in that?
My version of eggnog is a combination of a couple different recipes. It is partly from my parents, who are both excellent cooks and well-versed in the eggnog, and partly from my personal holy food bible: The Doubleday Cookbook. Anything and everything you need to know about cooking is in that book. I've had my copy for about five years now and it hasn't led me astray once.
Anyways, back to the nog. This recipe is very easy and only requires about fifteen minutes of hands-on time and a couple hours of waiting. This recipe also yields about seven to eight cups of eggnog so, if you are preparing it for a party, you will want to double or triple it.
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- 2 cups of whole milk
- 1 cup of heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp. of ground nutmeg
- 1/3 cup of white sugar, with an additional 1 tbsp. of white sugar
- ½ cup of bourbon or brandy (optional)
Steps
- Separate the egg whites from the yolks. Set aside the egg whites in the refrigerator to use later.
- Whip the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Continue whipping and gradually add the sugar until completely dissolved. Set aside.
- Combine the milk, cream, and nutmeg in a medium saucepan over medium to high heat. Heat the mixture until it reaches a very slight boil. Remove from heat.
- Combine the cream mixture with the whipped eggs and sugar. (Note - this next part is a little tricky.) We want to combine the cream mixture with the whipped eggs and sugar, but we do not want to cook the eggs fully when we do so. To do this, add the cream mixture to the eggs one ladle-full at a time while simultaneously whipping the mixture. This combines the mixtures gradually and gives the eggs time to adjust to the new temperature. This process is called tempering.
- Put the combined mixture back into the saucepan and heat until it has reached 160° Fahrenheit. This is the temperature at which all the bad things in eggs are cooked out.
- Remove from the saucepan and let cool for two to three hours. If you would like to add your choice of bourbon or brandy, this is the point to do so.
- Remember those egg whites? Just before you are ready to serve, whip the egg whites until soft white peaks begin to form. Just like we did with the yolks, gradually add the extra one tablespoon of sugar while whipping until the sugar has completely dissolved, or until you see stiff peaks forming.
- Whisk the egg whites into the chilled mixture.
- Top with a sprinkling of ground nutmeg and/or whipped cream. It is ready to serve.
Ideas? Questions? Concerns? Congratulations? Please don’t hesitate to send them my way.
All photos taken by Sam Cochrane