This post contains affiliate links.
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!
You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST for more great recipes!
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
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Text me new recipe ideas!
Simple, tasty ideas sent once a week. No spam.
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.
If you’d like eggnog flavored whipped cream you can add eggnog syrup or extract instead of vanilla to your whipping cream
Ummm, it’s exactly the same recipe for an ice cream base that NYT Cooking uses. Unfrozen nutmeg ice cream.
That’s because the custard for homemade ice cream is the same as the custard for egg nog, pudding, custard pie.
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!!
Yummm very easy to make love it.
Excellent!! I never liked eggnog but was always willing to try. My husband likes eggnog and I wanted to get him some and try it myself but everything I found in the store had carrageenan which gives me migraines. This recipe was easy to make. I bought my ingredients the day before Thanksgiving so I was not able to get HWC so instead of mixing milk and HWC, I used all half and half. It turned out great and even I liked it! I can’t wait to make more. Yummy!!!
My partner is a huge eggnog fan and he has declared this the perfect eggnog.
I made this for Christmas two years ago & it was delicious! I’m going to make it again this year for our ugly sweater party. I did add the rum in it & it was even better. I sent this to a friend to make her own.
Best egg nog I have ever had. I will never buy store bought ever again my family and friends absolutely love this recipe.
Hi Lauren. Thanks so much for this recipe! I like to make coquito around the holidays and I’ve been asked to make it for Thanksgiving. I was gonna buy egg nog at the store but I decided to see how hard it is to make. I found your recipe and I’m sooo glad I did. I made a test batch this morning and we just tried it, even though it wasn’t really cold enough yet. It is amazing and so much better than store bought. My husband can’t stop raving about it! I’ll never buy egg nog again!!
I love this recipe, my first time ever making eggnog and am happy the recipe is easy (since I am a beginner). I totally love eggnog and can drink it all year, but of course the stores only carry it during the holidays.
Now, I can make it whenever I like!!
I made the is last year with maple instead of sugar and im doing it again this year.
I made it. Flavour is amazing but it didn’t thicken at all. I followed all steps and measurements. Any suggestions on where I went wrong?
It sounds like it didn’t cook long enough.
Has anybody tried this recipe with duck eggs?
Yes, the duck eggs have it a creamier custard quality.
It works great with duck eggs! One duck egg is equivalent to 1.5 chicken eggs. For this recipe I would use 4 duck eggs.
My boyfriend and I are picky when it comes to eggnog. This recipe was outstanding! I think maybe some reviews weren’t as favorable because the recipe doesn’t say to take the saucepan off the heat when spooning it into the egg/sugar mixture. I only knew to do that because I was looking at several recipes. Really great recipe. I’ll be making this over the holidays!