Homemade Eggnog Recipe (2024)

Luxuriously rich, this homemade Eggnog recipe can’t even be compared to a carton from the store.

Fresh eggs, hot milk & cream, and warm spices create a decadent holiday drink, perfect to be enjoyed warm or chilled.

Homemade eggnog can be made with or without alcohol and will keep for about 3 days in the fridge. It’s party perfect!

What is Eggnog?

Eggnog is a rich creamy drink infused with warm spices. As with most recipes, the homemade version is so much better than store-bought.

• Texture: Made with milk, heavy cream, and eggs, and the texture is thicker than cream.
• Flavor: The flavor is sweet, lightly spiced, and we often add rum, brandy, or whiskey (but this can be made without alcohol too, see notes below).

We commonly see this drink in stores (and coffee shops!) during the Christmas season, served as a co*cktail for its festive flavor! Eggnog can be served chilled (over ice), hot, or even in a latte!

Ingredients in Eggnog

It’s hard to believe you can make such a great homemade eggnog recipe with everyday staples and a few common spices.

Here’s the lineup:

Dairy: Milk and cream create the base for this recipe. Adding heavy cream makes the best eggnog as it adds richness.

Egg yolks: Egg yolks thicken the mixture, add buttery texture and give eggnog its pale yellow color. The egg yolks are tempered (which means a hot liquid is added to raw eggs a little bit at a time) to keep the mixture smooth.

While some recipes use the whole egg or whip the eggs to form soft peaks, this method skips the whipping and cooks the yolks as raw egg can cause a risk of salmonella. Egg substitutes will work in this recipe.

Sugar, Spice, & Everything Nice. White sugar can be replaced with any sweetener you’d like. We love cinnamon, clove, and a splash of vanilla extract. Add in your favorite warm spices, from nutmeg to star anise or even cardamom.

Add alcohol (or don’t!). Add some alcohol spirits according to your preference if you’d like. Rum is our favorite spike for eggnog, we use about 1 cup but start with half and after tasting, add more if you’d like.

How to Make Homemade Eggnog

These are the basic steps for making delicious homemade eggnog. Get out your wire whisk, it’s easier than you think!

1. Whisk egg yolks in a large bowl until pale in color and slightly foamy.
2. Heat milk and spices in a large pot.
3. Add a bit of the heated milk to the egg yolks to temper them (more on tempering below). This keeps the eggs from ‘scrambling’.

4. Heat mixture until thickened and move to an ice bath (I do this in my kitchen sink).
5. Add flavors/spirits and refrigerate overnight.

Egg nog is perfect for enjoying during the holiday season. Garnish with whipped cream, a small dash of nutmeg, and a cinnamon stick or a sprinkle of ground cinnamon.

The Best Rum Alternatives

If you’re looking to add some alcohol to this traditional eggnog recipe, rum is a favorite. Alternatively, bourbon, brandy, or Southern Comfort are great options. For a festive twist, you could even add a couple of tablespoons of Amaretto, Bailey’s Irish Cream, or nutty Frangelico to each mug.

For a delicious twist on the classic eggnog recipe, try adding Irish Cream Liquor make a spiked eggnog latte!

How to Store Homemade Eggnog

Homemade eggnog should not linger for hours at room temperature. If you’re serving it in a punchbowl, put it in an ice bath, or just return the pitcher to the fridge after an hour.

Every winter celebration will be complete when you serve eggnog. Now let’s raise a cup of eggnog, dear, for Auld Lang Syne!

Have you tried this eggnog? Leave a comment and rating below and tag us on Instagram!