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You wont believe how easy and DELICIOUS homemade Eggnog is, and this recipe really is the best! Thick and creamy with the perfect mild flavor and hint of nutmeg. You'll never buy store-bought eggnog again!
Eggnog
I absolutely love eggnog! I have nothing against store-bought eggnog–we have it all the time in our fridge this time of year–but this homemade eggnog recipe is truly what dreams are made of! If you've ever thought you didn't like it, you just have to try it made from scratch.
Several years ago I sought out to make homemade eggnog. My first attempt was not a success and left my husband cringing. Let's just say that the completely “raw egg” method of making eggnog is just not for me.
I pressed forward, determined to succeed, and ended up loving this recipe from Cuisine at Home. I used ground nutmeg instead of fresh, because I always have ground on hand. I also ignored their ice-water bath suggestion and just refrigerated it instead.
The end result was liquid gold, and it's become our family's favorite eggnog recipe ever since! Seriously, this homemade recipe will “WOW” even the biggest eggnog snob! For a fun flavor twist, try my Pumpkin Spice Eggnog recipe!
This eggnog recipe is thick, sweet, creamy and smooth, with the perfect flavor. It doesn't contain alcohol (if you'd like to add some, read on for my suggestions), but we are non-alcohol drinkers at my house, and I wanted an eggnog recipe my kids can enjoy too.
How to make eggnog:
Start by whisking the egg yolk and sugar together in a small bowl. Then, in a saucepan over medium-high heat, combine cream, milk, salt, and nutmeg and stir the mixture until it just reaches a simmer. Next temper the eggs by adding small spoonfuls of the hot mixture to the egg mixture.
Stir each spoonful and once most of the hot mixture has been added, add the entire mixture back to the saucepan. Continue cooking and whisking for just another minute or two until it barely thickens. It will continue to thicken as it cools. Then remove it from the heat and add the vanilla. Refrigerate the eggnog mixture until chilled.
We like to serve it with a some whipped cream and an extra little dash of cinnamon and nutmeg on top.
What type of alcohol goes in eggnog?
If you would like to add alcohol to your eggnog, choose a drink with a high alcohol concentration to help counterbalance the sweetness of the eggnog. Common choices of alcohol to add to eggnog include brandy, rum, bourbon or whisky.
Don't miss my Eggnog French Toast!
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Recipe
Homemade Eggnog
Ingredients
- 6 large egg yolks
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 cups milk
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ground cinnamon , for topping
- alcohol optional, see note
Instructions
- Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together in a medium bowl until light and creamy.
- In a saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the cream, milk, nutmeg and salt. Stir often until mixture reaches a bare simmer.
- Add a big spoonful of the hot milk to the egg mixture, whisking vigorously. Repeat, adding a big spoonful at a time, to temper the eggs.
- Once most of the hot milk has been added to the eggs, pour the mixture back into the saucepan on the stove.
- Whisk constantly for a minute or so, until the mixture is just slightly thickened (or until it reaches about 160 degrees F on a thermometer). It will thicken more as it cools.
- Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, and alcohol*, if using.
- Pour the eggnog through a fine mesh strainer into a pitcher or other container and cover with plastic wrap.
- Refrigerate until chilled. It will thicken as it cools. If you want a thinner, completely smooth consistency, you can add the entire mixture to a blender with 1 or 2 tablespoons of milk and blend until smooth.
- Serve with a sprinkle of cinnamon or nutmeg, and fresh whipped cream, if desired.
- Store homemade eggnog in the fridge for up to one week.
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
This is my second time making this and it is so good! I made homemade whip cream with it and it literally tastes like ice cream!!
Can I ask how you made whipped cream from
This? Wouldn’t the added milk and ingredients to the cream make the eggnog not able to whip up into a fluffy whip cream? Ty! 🙂 I’d love to learn
She made whipped cream to accompany the drink.
You add the whipped cream to top it off at the end when your put it in your glass.
Ummm, it’s exactly the same recipe for an ice cream base that NYT Cooking uses. Unfrozen nutmeg ice cream.
I made this eggnog for Christmas Eve. It is out of this world delicious!
Oh. My. Word. So delicious and so easy! As others have said…I’ll never buy eggnog again! Thank you so much for sharing!
Oh wow!!!! This is awesome!!!! My husband loved it!!
Made this last night and it was great!! Even though it was a bit chunky initially (and smelled like scrambled eggs… we didn’t temper the eggs fully because the bowl that the eggs were in was too small, plus I didn’t realize why that step was so important…!), tossing it in the blender with a dash of milk fixed it right up and had the added benefit of making it frothy on top. So good!
Great recipe!! We loved it. So simple and delicious!!
I never made homemade egg nog before. Last year I made this recipe, it was so deliscious I will never buy store bought again. There is no comparison.
I wanted to try this. It’s my first attempt and I was wondering if the recipe is just calling for egg yolks, or the egg whites as well. Thanks
Just egg yolks.
My son and I made it last night. It turned out A-MAZING! We followed the directions word for word . I was super excited when the eggs did not turn into scrambled. I’ve never tempered eggs before. This morning our egg nog is wonderfully thick and super delicious. Thank you thank you! Now I can impress our friends.
Wonderful! I’m so happy to hear it, and thanks for coming back to comment XOX
It’s good dont get me wrong but for me it’s too sweet and not thick enough.
Cook it a little longer it you want it thicker 🙂
Hi, Lauren!
I made this last night and it is Wonderful!! My husband is an eggnog snob, but he really liked it!! We’ve had it both ways–plain and with Amaretto. YUM! Also, we are doing Keto, so I used powdered Xylitol. It’s just fantastic. I saw this by way of FB and am going to repost with kudos!! Thanks!
Thank you so much Karen! I’m glad to hear it got your hubby’s stamp of approval too 🙂
Very Very thick.
I would not consider the eggs raw as they go through a cooking process in the end.
Im using this as a mix with Appleton’s rum. Don’t think I’d use this recipe again because its too thick.
I made some years back that was perfect, just never kept the recipe.
It is tasty .
Hi Corissa, the longer you cook the mixture at the end, the thicker it will get. You can just thin it out with some milk.
This was FANTASTIC! I double the recipe and spiked it with Southern Comfort once it had chilled down. Great recipe! Thanks for posting!
Thanks Sarah! So happy to hear you liked it! Thanks for taking the time to comment.
I’ve made this twice for my hubby. It turned out so great. I didn’t have heavy cream so I made it with 3 1/2 cups of whole milk with one stick of butter. It’s just as good and cheaper. Thanks for the tips on how to temper eggs. So many possibilities have opened up now.