Use You Nogg'n! (Make Homemade Eggnog)

I adore eggnog. I like it extra thick, so it's like a milkshake. I like it cut with 7-Up so it's thinned. I like it with nutmeg. I like it with cardamom. I like it with some whiskey. I like Silk-nog. I like eggnog any which way.

But I didn't know for sure until this Christmas if I'd like homemade eggnog. The kind they refer to in Christmas movies as "the good stuff," and with an "Auntie sure makes tasty eggnog! [wink, wink]"

But I so did.

Here it is. The Good Stuff. From Anna Thomas' Vegetarian Epicure

Eggnog

12 eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 qt. rich milk
1 cup cognac
1 cup dark rum
1 large orange
1 lemon
1 qt. heavy cream
grated nutmeg

Beat the egg yolks and sugar until thick, then stir in the milk, cognac, and rum. Beat the egg whites until they just hold a peak, and fold them in. Put this mixture away to chill for a few hours.

Peel the orange and cut off the white pulp from the inside of the peel until only the pure orange rind is left. Cut this into matchsticks, as thin as possible, and about 1 1/2 inches long. Grate the fresh lemon rind.

Whip the cream until it only just begins to thicken, not so much that it actually holds peaks. Stir this half-whipped cream into the milk and egg mixture, and beat a few more strokes with the whisk. Stir in the lemon rind and half of the orange rind. Pour the eggnog into a serving bowl. Over the top of it, sprinkle the remaining orange rind and plenty of grated nutmeg.

Serves 25-30.

A few notes:

As you may have noticed, you'll be drinking raw eggs and so, assuming you don't want to die of salmonella poisoning, you need to be certain that the eggs you're using are fresh fresh fresh and from healthy happy chickens (choose a local, cage-free farm). 

The recipe as written serves 25-30. Unless you're expecting that many guests or your smaller group loves eggnog as much as I do (I had 3 or 4 mugs) and won't be driving afterward, you might consider making a half-batch. Using the measurements provided makes a LOT of eggnog and, being mainly raw eggs and cream, it won't keep well.

Serve with swizzle-sticks or spoons. The cream will separate from the nog and being fresh from that relationship and looking for fun will cling to the very next nice person it meets (i.e. you and your nose).

Keep some Ibuprofen on-hand for the next morning. No, not because of the cognac & rum, but because after whipping the egg whites and cream you won't be able to turn your wrist the next day, which is something I find inconvenient. 

When I make this again (and I will make it again) I will not be cutting the orange peel into matchsticks. Or, if I do ('cause you never know, maybe I'll change my mind and feel matchstick-y) I'll cut fewer. As it was, with the entire orange peel cut and in the nog, the peel ended up in my mouth as I took sips and I had to pull it out and stick it back in my mug and then on the next sip it happened again. Annoying. I liked the orange flavor, but I'll be grating the zest next time, just like I did the lemon rind.



And there you have it! Creamy, delish, sweet, cold from the fridge but very 'warming' homemade eggnog.

Perhaps your New Year celebration could use a batch?