This eggnog was introduced to my Irish friends in a modest way, sort of, I know we’re only Yanks and so we’re amateur drinkers at best, but it’s New Year’s Eve, and here you are trapped in Ohio for the holidays, so why not enjoy an American tradition? This was me, setting them up for the one-two punch. Here was punch number one:
Stay Home Egg Nog Fluff
1 fifth high-quality dark rum
1 fifth high-quality bourbon
1 dozen eggs, separated
1 to 2 quarts whipping cream
1 lb powdered sugar
Nugmeg, cinnamon, star anise, and allspice to taste
Beat the sugar into the egg yolks. Add the alcohol slowly, then add the spices and mix thoroughly. Refrigerate at least an hour to “cure.” Two to five hours isn’t a bad thing.
When you’re half an hour from serving, pour the nog into a giant serving bowl.
Beat the whipping cream to stiff peaks. Fold the whipped cream into the nog.
Beat the egg whites until they’re stiff and fluffy. Fold them into the whipped cream + nog.
Serve in small cups and offer spoons. Garnish with a sprinkle of nutmeg.
You sort of eat this nog, rather than drink it. Stir it throughout your party to keep the nog mixed with the fluffy stuff.
If you have leftovers, i.e., if your friends are not hardened drunks who aren’t used to sticky Starbucks beverages, you can use the leftover nog (beaten well) as the egg+milk+sugar portion of a crepe recipe to feed any survivors in the morning.
We did this for our Irish friends, who got us up at an unconscionable hour on New Year’s Day to attend Mass. Seriously? So I gave them the hair of the dog, in the form of highly alcoholic crepes wrapped around hunks of ham. Worked pretty well.
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For a good time on the darkest nights of the year, listen to me reading this story aloud. You can also have it to read, if you like, in this collection, LOCAL MAGICS, available only at Book View Café.
