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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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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.
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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!!
Would honey work in place of the sugar? Has anyone tried this?
Back to report honey definitely works. And oh MY, this eggnog is delicious.
I used a little over 1/3 cup raw honey and added 1/2 tsp more nutmeg, as well as 1/4 tsp cinnamon before cooling the eggnog.
After cooling it overnight, I found the eggnog to have almost the consistency of ice cream (not a bad thing), which was perfect for my coffee. I blended the mixture with whole milk (50:50) and it was the perfect consistency for drinking–still a bit thick, and slightly frothy from blending.
THANK YOU. I’m actually in my kitchen making this again as I type this.
This was great and I made it low fat and sugar free by doing it with truvia, fat free half and half and fat free milk. It was an experiment because I am on Weight Watchers. It came out fantastic!!! Couldn’t believe it. Thick and creamy.
I have a similar recipe that my Grandma made. It includes a box of vanilla pudding and uses raw egg whites. It is called float pudding.
Can I use Splenda in place of sugar?
I haven’t tried it but I think it should work fine. 🙂 enjoy!
Quick funny story. Made eggnog yesterday for the first time ever using this recipe. Got distracted in the store when buying nutmeg and accidentally picked up mustard seed. Didn’t notice until I was done and chilled it and took a drink! Let’s just say I don’t recommend it….at all!
Made it again with the correct ingredients. It’s delicious! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I’m sure this will become a holiday tradition for my family especially since the kids enjoyed helping with the whisking….and the tasting!
Thanks again!
Thanks for sharing! I’m so glad it turned out for you despite the mustard seed mistake :).
I meant to reply with this sooner….
A tradition we have during the holidays is making eggnog biscuits. This recipe made the best eggnog biscuits I’ve ever made/had.
Thanks again for the recipe!
Wow great recipe!!! Better than anything in the store x 3
I don’t understand why people are concerned with raw egg yolks when you’re heating to 160*F
Thanks David! I’m so glad you liked the recipe!
Perfection! Exactly what I was hoping for. It’s my first time cooking eggnog and I really wanted the taste/texture I grew up with.
Thank you!!!
I love your recipe and have a comment about making it thicker. Whip up the egg whites and FOLD them into the cooked eggnog. YUMMY, really thick.
Thanks so much!
This recipe is the closest I’ve ever found to the way my grandmother’s tasted back in the 60’s when I was young. I love that it is so eggy tasting.
Hi Lauren my name is Pat Jackson I’m trying to make homemade egg nog I want a simple recipe and also want to know the best alcohol to put in please email me