Cyril K. Collins Eggnog Recipe (Egg Nog)

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This is my grandfather's eggnog recipe. It is a rich, creamy, and truly delicious version of the holiday drink. I do not know if he concocted it himself or picked it up somewhere. I've tuned it a bit to balance the cream and sugar and to (in 2009) lower the whiskey and increase the rum which I like better.

Please note that this eggnog is a potent alcoholic beverage. Please encourage the members of your party to bring a designated driver if they plan on drinking. To lower the alcohol in the recipe, use lower proof whiskey and/or rum, or substitute a cup of milk for every cup of alcohol removed.

Ingredients	8 servings	16 servings	24 servings
http://256.com/gray/recipes/eggnog/
Fresh Eggs (separated into yolks/whites)	4	8	12
Sugar (divided into 2 equal parts)	1/2 cup (1/4c, 1/4c)	1 cup (1/2c, 1/2c)	1 1/2 cups (3/4c, 3/4c)
White Rum (dark works)	1 cup	2 cups	3 cups
Milk (Whole or 2%)	1 1/2 cups	3 cups	4 1/2 cups
Whiskey (Bourbon or Canadian)	1 cup	2 cups	3 cups
Heavy/Whipping Cream (divided into 2 equal parts)	1 cup (1/2c, 1/2c)	2 cups (1c, 1c)	3 cups (1 1/2c, 1 1/2c)
Ground Nutmeg (strongly recommended)	Enough to sprinkle on servings. Consider whole nutmeg nuts and grinder.

Eggnog Recipe Instructions

You are doing things gently and slowly to preserve the eggnog's fluffiness. A good whisk for the stirring and a high speed mixer for the egg-whites and cream helps this process immensely. Notes on taking this to a party below.

Separate eggs into yolks and whites in separate bowls (see below for a how-to). I put the whites into the mixer and the yolks into another bowl.
Beat egg-yolks with 1/2 of sugar, set aside.
Beat egg-whites until stiff, then mix in other 1/2 of sugar.
Pour the yolks into the whites and mix together slowly.
Stir in white rum slowly. I've tried dark rum and it works.
Stir in milk slowly (see below for dairy intolerance)
Stir in whiskey slowly (Bourbon, Canadian, Sour Mash. I use Jim Beam or Jack Daniels)
Stir in 1/2 of cream slowly
Whip rest (1/2) of cream and fold it into the mixture carefully. Notes on how to fold below.
Serve at room temperature by ladling the eggnog into cups and sprinkle nutmeg on the top. Information on nutmeg grinders below. Try to get some of the foam and some of the liquid (if not fully mixed) in each cup.

Notes

Drinking responsibly: Albeit strong, this eggnog recipe makes a truly delicious drink -- I am quite biased of course. This translates into the fact that you need to make more than you expect since it will be consumed faster. This also means that you should encourage people to bring their designated drivers if they are interested in sampling. If you see me intoxicated (hosting, walking, or backseat driving I assure you) around the time of the holidays, you will know the reason why.
Nonalcoholic: If you wish to leave out the nog, this recipe can be made nonalcoholic by substituting an equal amounts of milk for the rum and whiskey and it is still delicious. You can also try adding more heavy cream. A teaspoon of vanilla will also add flavor missing from the alcohol. I've not tried it personally and I'd love to get more feedback on this. I understand and respect the question, but to me, making eggnog without alcohol is akin to making lemon-aid without the lemons.
Raw eggs: People ask about the raw eggs in the eggnog. My grandfather always said that the alcohol "cures" the eggs although I'm not sure that's true. I tried pasteurized eggs in 2004 and they do not work. They didn't separate well and the whites did not froth up at all. The FDA says that in unpasteurized eggs, one in 20,000 contain bad bacteria. I have made (and drunk) at least 100 batches and have never felt ill or had one of my guests feel bad. I usually buy the eggs just before I made the eggnog and keep them well refrigerated. In 2005 I made a batch with some organic eggs laid the day before and I've never had such yolks or foam. Yummy! I try to smell the egg when I crack it open and although I have never gotten a bad egg over the years -- I did get some bad cream. You can also try gently lowering the eggs into a container of water. Bad eggs should float because of a build up of gases, old eggs should sink slowly, while good eggs should sink nicely to the bottom of the container. You should never use unclean, cracked, broken or leaking eggs.
Dairy intolerance: If you (or your guests) are lactose intolerant, there are a couple of options. This is different from a milk allergy which precludes all dairy products. I've not tried it but I hear that Lactaid milk found in many large markets tastes just like normal milk, maybe a bit sweeter. I assume it would be fine in eggnog. I have used sweet acidophilus milk which tastes like normal milk but has beneficial cultures and some varieties are lactose free. There are also milk alternative like Vance's DariFree which I would think would work. If you have folks with intolerance, you could separate out some of the mixture made with one of these lactose-free milks for them to enjoy before you add any heavy cream. It will be less thick and a little stronger but it should be tasty. Others have used soy-based Silk coffee creamer as a thickener in place of the cream.
Punch Cups: Eggnog is traditionally served in small crystal glasses or punch cups which can be found in the US for ~$2 each in many antique stores.
French toast: Although certainly almost as good as a drink the next morning, eggnog can be refrigerated overnight and used at breakfast by soaking bread in it and frying till browned for some excellent French toast -- adding butter and syrup at will.
Separating (how-to): I usually separate the egg yolk from the white by carefully cracking an egg over a cup and then slowly opening it up so that the bottom half of the shell holds the yolk. The excess white will run out into the cup. Then very carefully switch the yolk to the other half of the shell letting more white run out into the cup. Do this a couple of more times slowly keeping the yolk from mixing at all with the whites. When you are done you can transfer the yolk into a bowl with the others and the whites (with no yolk in it) into the bowl with the whites. If the yolk breaks at all then discard immediately.

Another method is to crack the egg open over a bowl keeping the yolk into one half of the shell like the above. But instead of switching the yolk from one half-shell into another, just pour it down slowly into your hand keeping your fingers close to one another. The white will seep through your fingers while the yolk will stay in your hand. When the white has seeped out, lay the yolk into a separate bowl. One problem with this method is that any contamination on the shells will be transferred to the yolk and white. Also, careful hand-washing is necessary prior to this operation.

WARNING: With such a large number of eggs, it is recommended that for each egg, you separate the whites into a cup and then pour this cup into a larger container upon success. If you break a yolk into the whites you can then discard only that egg. Separating failures usually result on the last egg and will ruin the whites if any yolk gets in. A dozen eggs can be suddenly quite hard to find one holiday evening. If you do manage to drop some yolk into the whites, see if you can fish it out cleanly with a spoon immediately.

NOTE: I have used with limited success an egg separator tool. This is a little device which captures the yolks and allows the whites to run into the container below. It will not save you from a broken yolk but does speed up the process a bit.
Folding (how-to): Julia Child suggests using a rubber spatula, dealing with 1/3 of the mixture of a time, and rotating the bowl until blended. Putting the spatula into the mixture and essentially bringing up to the top what was on the bottom. Move the bowl and do it again and keep doing it until the mixture has some consistency. In other words it is not still mostly whipped cream here and other there, but an airy light mixture generally. I've also used a whisk to fold with success.
Taking to a party: If you are trying to take some eggnog to a party, you have a couple of options. Recently, I did the egg-whites, yolks, and sugar steps and put that foamy mixture in one container. Then I mixed all of the "nog" liquids (without the cream) into a second container. Then I brought the heavy cream which I added and whipped on site. You could also add the heavy cream liquid in with the other liquids and whip and take the rest of the cream in a third container.
Nutmeg Grinders: Grinders or graters allow you to use whole nutmeg nuts which about the size of a large olive and are quite hard. I usually grind the nutmeg right on top of the individual eggnog servings although grinding a bunch into a shaker immediately ahead of the party will also work. The pre-ground stuff is just not as flavorful. I've also noticed that older nutmegs left over from last year are good but tend to jam the grinders more. You should be able to find a grinder at your local kitchen store. You can also use a microplane with great results -- just watch your fingers. If not, here are some online sources.
- Great list of nutmeg graters and nuts. From US$3-$20.
- Chrome Nutmeg Grinder US$25 from Williams-Sonoma. We like this grater although it has been jamming lately. May need fresher nuts.
- An interesting verticle grinder for US$20 from Cutlery and More.
- Google products search for more ideas.
History: My grandfather, Cyril K. Collins, was Assistant Vice President in charge of the Traffic Department of the Bell System, back when it was the sole US telephone company. He proposed and implemented such technologies as call-time discounts, testified before Congress numerous times about changes in regulations, and was involved with the introduction of direct-dialing and area codes. Before this all calls were routed by operators. He would have been fascinated by the transition of computers from telephone switching systems into the backbone of the information age.

Just exchanged email with a woman who said that this was her father's recipe as well. As far as she knew her father got it from her grandfather who moved came over to Winnipeg, Canada from Lancashire, England. Interesting. Also heard that nog in Dutch can mean more which may explain the derivation of the name. This is also true in Afrikaans which is a form of old Dutch. Another reader sent me mail commenting that Irish and Scottish receipes that he's seen are very close to this. My grandfather's family emigrated from Ireland so maybe he brought it with him.
Website traffic: Here are graphs of the hits to my eggnog recipe page over the years. I'm always amused by them. Hope it implies that this means that 1000s of batches of my grandfather's nog is being made each season. That would, I hope, amuse him as well.

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