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!!
Great recipe! I curdled mine… shame on me. After it was chilled I put it in the blender! It came out perfect, my husband loved it! Egg Nog is one of his favorites. Now he could have it year round!
This recipe is great! Easy to make and is now a new family favorite.
This was great! I live in Japan and wanted to introduce eggnog to my colleagues as American Christmas culture. I was a little worried that they might think it was too sweet, but many of them really liked it! Thank you!
Come from Ireland, Living in Switzerland and haven’t drank eggnog in 25 years since visiting my American family around the holidays. Just finished and cooling in the fridge…Can’t wait.👍
Now to find a Pavlova recipe to make with the leftover egg whites😋
It’s delicious but nutmeg is a bit strong gor me. I think I’ll just as I’ve done in past and just sprinkle a little over it when it’s placed in the cup.
Use a blender on high instead of a whisk for 4 minutes
Wow! I don’t like egg nog but this was amazing and easy to make. It was great warm right after it was cooked. I will never buy egg nog again!
I ended up with custard and flavored milk. Please estimate big spoon fulls in cup fractions or ounces. I will try again with a stand mixer to get more vigorous wisking.
I just use a ladle and whisk very vigorously until smooth, and then add another ladleful and continue the process until I’ve used half of the milk mixture. If you rush this process it will turn into custard or scrambled eggs.
Pour the heated mixture in slowly while using a stand or hand mixture.
I added 1 tsp of ground clove and 1 tsp of allspice to a 4x batch. Wait until it’s cool to add the booze.
Good stuff.
I love this recipe and it tastes amazing! I never liked eggnog (only tried carton ones). Thank you!
Was very easy/fast to make, I definately stirred the whole time. I used a thermometer which I think is a must as it is hard to know temp with different stoves and how they behave. I did not go at all above 160 F and took off the stove to temper egg yolks. Then returned to stove / continuously stirred with a whisk. Upon straining my mixture had zero excess in strainer other than coating.
Perfect recipe and amazing yummy eggnog.
Also amount of sugar is just standard, you can add less or more since some people prefer less sweet, just like you would ask for a less sweet frapp from a coffee place, that is not a reason to under rate a recipe!
This is the most delicious eggnog you will find and it is easy to make. Just take your time and you can’t fail. I have made it 2 years in a row and this year I doubled the recipe. Here are some tips: I reduced sugar to 1/3 cup, Don’t rush the process. It took 4 or 5 minutes to whisk the eggs and add milk starting with small ladle fulls; I used a milk bag I had on hand to strain the eggnog.