Best Eggnog Recipes

AMAZINGLY GOOD EGGNOG

Steps:

• Combine milk, cloves, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, and cinnamon in a saucepan, and heat over lowest setting for 5 minutes. Slowly bring milk mixture to a boil.
• In a large bowl, combine egg yolks and sugar. Whisk together until fluffy. Whisk hot milk mixture slowly into the eggs. Pour mixture into saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly for 3 minutes, or until thick. Do not allow mixture to boil. Strain to remove cloves, and let cool for about 1 hour.
• Stir in rum, cream, 2 teaspoon vanilla, and nutmeg. Refrigerate for 8 hours, or overnight, before serving.

CLASSIC EGGNOG

Steps:

• Whisk the eggs, egg yolk and sugar in a bowl until combined. Heat the milk and 1/2 cup heavy cream in a medium saucepan over medium heat until steaming; do not boil. Remove from the heat. Whisk 1 cup of the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture, then whisk the egg mixture back into the saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon and a thermometer registers 165 degrees F, about 5 minutes. (Do not boil or the eggs will curdle.)
• Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl and stir in the vanilla and nutmeg. Let cool at room temperature, about 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate until cold, at least 2 hours or up to 1 week.
• Whisk the remaining 1/2 cup heavy cream in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Slowly whisk the whipped cream into the chilled eggnog mixture, then whisk in the rum. Pour into glasses, sprinkle with nutmeg and serve with cinnamon sticks.

EGGNOG

Steps:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Add the milk, cream, bourbon and nutmeg and stir to combine.
• Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat to soft peaks. With the mixer still running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.
• Whisk the egg whites into the mixture. Chill and serve.
• Cook's Note: For cooked eggnog, follow procedure below.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, over high heat, combine the milk, heavy cream and nutmeg and bring just to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and gradually temper the hot mixture into the egg and sugar mixture. Then return everything to the pot and cook until the mixture reaches 160 degrees F. Remove from the heat, stir in the bourbon, pour into a medium mixing bowl, and set in the refrigerator to chill.
• In a medium mixing bowl, beat the egg whites to soft peaks. With the mixer running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Whisk the egg whites into the chilled mixture.

EGGNOG

Steps:

• In medium saucepan, whisk milk and sugar over medium heat until sugar is dissolved, 1 to 2 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk egg yolks. Whisking constantly, pour hot mixture into yolks in a slow and steady stream.
• Return mixture to pan; cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until thick enough to coat back of spoon, 20 to 25 minutes; do not let simmer. Quickly strain into a bowl. Stir in bourbon, if desired, and cream. Cool completely; cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate until chilled. Garnish with nutmeg, if desired.

HOMEMADE EGGNOG

Steps:

• In a heavy saucepan, whisk together eggs, sugar and salt. Gradually add 4 cups milk; cook and stir over low heat until a thermometer reads 160°-170°, 30-35 minutes. Do not allow to boil. Immediately transfer to a large bowl., Stir in vanilla, nutmeg and remaining milk. Place bowl in an ice-water bath, stirring until milk mixture is cool. (If mixture separates, process in a blender until smooth.) Refrigerate, covered, until cold, at least 3 hours. , To serve, beat cream until soft peaks form. Whisk gently into cooled milk mixture. If desired, sprinkle with additional nutmeg before serving.

THE VERY BEST EGGNOG, EVER

Steps:

• Combine milk and spices including vanilla bean in a heavy saucepan and let them infuse over lowest possible heat for 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, combine yolks and sugar in a large bowl and whisk until well mixed.
• Bring milk just to a boil and very gradually whisk it into the yolk mixture. Do this a few tablespoons at a time at first, stir very well before adding more hot milk (this is called tempering the egg yolks and prevents them from overcooking and curdling). Return the mixture to the saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring steadily with a wooden spoon, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until foam subsides and mixture thickens to consistency of heavy cream. Mixture should thickly coat the back of a wooden spoon. Do not boil, or mixture will curdle. Keep the heat at medium.
• Strain mixture into a large bowl and let cool to room temperature. Stir in half-and-half (or the other substitutions mentioned above), vanilla extract, nutmeg and rum and brandy if using. If you choose you can leave the alcohol out.
• Refrigerate eggnog until cold, at least 2 hours, preferably overnight. Just before serving, dust top of eggnog with additional freshly grated nutmeg.
• Note: "half-and-half" is NOT a mixture of half cream and half milk, but it is equal in butterfat content to a mixture of 1/4 cream and 3/4 milk.

MARTHA'S CLASSIC EGGNOG

Steps:

• Beat yolks in a very large bowl until thick and pale. Slowly beat in sugar. Whisk in milk and 2 cups cream. Mix in bourbon, rum, and Cognac. Cover, and refrigerate for up to 1 day.
• Just before serving, beat whites until stiff peaks form. Fold whites into eggnog. Whisk remaining 1 cup cream until stiff peaks form, and fold into eggnog. (Alternatively, you can fold half the whipped cream into eggnog, and top with remaining half.) Sprinkle with nutmeg.