It’s another year, and another season for the best drink of the holiday season. A good mulled wine is a heart warming elixir on a cool Christmas morning. The sight of children’s joyous smiles with wine spirit and subtle hints of spice puts the ho-ho-ho in holiday spirit. Spiced cider is a Yuletide tradition worth sips between visits with relatives.

Alas, no drink compares to egg nog.

A Drink Fit for Kings and Queens

Egg nog traces its roots back to medieval Europe. The British warmed milk and added wine or beer and spices to brew a drink called posset. Shortly after, Monks added eggs and figs to give the drink more depth. In the 17th century the Lord of Carlisle’s recipe specified 18 egg yolks, 8 egg whites, cinnamon, nutmeg, mace to be combined in heated milk. His recipe called for one pint of sherry to spike the drink.

The Lord of Carlise’s recipe forms the basis of today’s modern egg nog. Egg nog is so easy to make it’s worth taking the time and making your own. Anything you make will be tastier and fresher than anything you’ll buy in the store.

If you have concerns about eating raw eggs, you can warm the mixture and add eggs slowly the same as you would in making a custard or pudding. You can also add alcohol. Most alcoholic recipes contain enough alcohol to kill any bugs you might be concerned with in the mixture.

If you’re going to buy, there’s only one brand worth buying. Southern Comfort. It’s so tasty my 13 year old enjoys it.

The Best Egg Nog You’ll Ever Drink

My recipe is a riff on Alton Brown and Martha Stewarts recipes. Alton Brown is all about food science. Martha Stewart has THEE most loaded recipe that preserves eye sight and flavor. There’s no sense of making an alcoholic beverage if it isn’t flavorful. Martha Stewart’s recipe still delivers on flavor and spice while giving you a kick.

Two modifications were made for this year’s recipe. A US Virgin Island’s rum is used in place of Captain Morgan’s spiced rum. E&J and Hennessy also make an appearance. Uncle Nearest is still the star of the show.

Sabrina’s homemade vanilla extract returns. If you can be patient for a year, you will never go back to store bought extract.

This is an aged egg nog, and is designed to be made weeks in advance. The mixture will age slowly in the back of your fridge. The longer you let it age, the better it will be. Aging for a month is ideal.

Let’s get to it. Seasons Greetings and Happy Holidays!

Ingredients

• 1 nutmeg seed
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 Tablespoon real vanilla extract
• 7 egg yolks
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 pint heavy whipping cream
• 1 quart half and half
• 2 cups Uncle Nearest
• 1 cup of E&J VSOP
• 1 cup of rum
• 1 cup of Henneseey

You’ll need a stand mixer, a Microplane, and a rubber spatula.

This recipe yields just over a half gallon.

The Method

1. Freeze the stand mixer’s whisk attachment and bowl until they’re really cold.
2. In the meantime separate the yolks from the egg whites. If you don’t want to age the nog, you can whip the whites with sugar and make a meringue fluff to top the eggnog.
3. Using your microplane, grind the nutmeg seed until you have enough nutmeg to flavor your nog. You can grate it in a dish or bowl, or whatever you have to hold it. The nutmeg amount is a matter of preference, so grate enough to taste.
4. Using your microplane, grind the cinnamon stick into the same bowl or dish as the nutmeg for your flavor profile.
5. Take the stand mixer’s bowl and whisk attachment out of the freezer and attach them to the mixer.
6. Dump the egg yolks in the bowl.
7. Dump the sugar on top of the egg yolks.
8. Pinch the salt in with the yolks and sugar.
9. Dump the ground nutmeg and cinnamon in with the yolks and sugar.
10. Start the stand mixer by setting it to its lowest setting. You will cream (there’s a funny chef meme out there) the sugar and egg yolks for a long time.
11. Cream the sugar/yolk mix until the yellow yolky color lightens and when you stop the mixer and lift the whisk, the yolks form a ribbon like stream from the whisk. It will be speckled because you’ve whisked the yolks with nutmeg and cinnamon.
12. Restart the mixer and continue whisking for some more time.
13. Add the vanilla extract.
14. Increase the whisk speed to low/medium speed. The yolk mixer will thicken because more air is being added to the mix.
15. Stop the mixer. Using the rubber spatula scrap any excess creamed yolk from the sides of the bowl.
16. Restart the mixer on a low speed, we don’t want these ingredients splashing out of the bowl.
17. Now, add the pint of whipping cream. Let the mixer whisk for a little longer. Do not whisk for too long. You’re not trying to make eggnog fluff.
18. Add the half and half. The mixture should thin out now and you should be watching your eggnog mixture slosh around. It’s a little thick, this is okay. Just watch it for a moment or two.
19. Add the dark rum. Watch the mixture slosh around. The color will darken to a rich, eggnog like, color.
20. Add the cognac. Mixture is thinning some more.
21. Add the brandy. Mixture is even thinner.
22. Take a swig of the Uncle Nearest.
23. Pour the rest of in the bowl.
24. Let the mixer slosh all of the ingredients around for a bit.
25. Stop the mixer.
26. Stir the mixture using your spoon. Make sure you scrape the bottom some stand mixers find it hard to reach. Look at how your egg nog slides off of the back of the spoon.
27. Is your egg nog…right? Do you need more whiskey? If so, take a sip and add a sip.
28. Restart the mixer. Just let the stuff mix for a while. Listen to a couple of Christmas songs.
29. Stop the mixer, and stir using your spoon.
30. Empty the bowl into a glass jar with seal. Place the jar IN THE BACK OF THE FRIDGE.
31. Wait a couple weeks.

Merry Christmas!