Towards a Theory of Eggnog

 
For the last two years I've been using this method to make eggnog:

• whisk egg yolks with some sugar until pale and foamy
• whisk egg whites with some sugar until soft peaks form
• fold the two egg foams together and stir into milk and cream
• add rum and nutmeg

The problem with this method, first of all, is that if it sits for even five minutes, the eggy foams separate from the milk and cream. I wouldn't mind a bit of head on the nog, but the foams make up about 90% of the volume.  Even during the brief moments in which all the ingredients are properly incorporated, the light and airy texture of the nog doesn't seem appropriately robust and nourishing.

So I've done some experimenting with my nog method.  First I tried simply whisking all the ingredients together, by-passing the egg separation and foaming.  This version also separated, which absolutely baffles me, as whisked eggs don't separate if you leave them in the fridge.

Out of sheer curiosity I tried cooking out a mixture of milk, cream, and yolks, à la crème anglaise.  It was a bit thick, even once thinned with rum, but before repeating the process with a lower yolk content I decided that the cooked-egg taste is also inappropriate to the ideal nog.

For now I've settled on using just yolks.  Somehow this isn't as satisfying a concept as drinking whole eggs, but it's tasty.


Eggnog: A Working Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 oz egg yolks
• 8 oz granulated sugar
• 1 pinch kosher salt
• 16 fl oz whole milk
• 4 fl oz heavy cream
• 16 fl oz golden rum, I use Appleton's
• nutmeg to taste

Procedure

1. Whisk sugar and salt into egg yolks.
2. Add all remaining ingredients and whisk to combine.

The final important piece of information I came across this year was that properly boozed nog can be made well, well before consumption, and aged in the fridge.  Michael Ruhlman has successfully aged eggnog for two years, if you can believe it.

I put up a large jar of eggnog on the first of December, with the intention of cracking it open on the solstice or Christmas.  It lasted maybe fours days in the fridge.  A replacement batch is currently ripening on the bottom shelf.

Eggnog

Add eggnog to the list of food and drink I will never buy from a grocery store again (along with bacon, ice cream, pizza dough...)

You can create a superior drink by using good cream and eggs, and freshly grated nutmeg. It also has the added decadence of an egg white foam on top, unlike the homogeneous store-bought nog, repleat with emulsifiers that prevent separation. Drinking the creamy liquid through the foam is the height of Christmas luxury.

Egg Nog Ratio - 2 parts milk : 1 part cream : 1 part egg (by weight: a standard large egg weighs two ounces)

Sugar, liquor, and nutmeg to taste.

Separate the egg into yolks and whites. Whip the whites to soft peaks. Add a touch of sugar and continue whipping to firm peaks. The sugar helps keep the whites stiff.

In a separate bowl, whip the egg yolks until the yellow colour has paled. Whisk in milk, cream, and liquor. Rum is the obvious choice, but I also enjoy brandy. Sweeten to taste. Grate a touch of nutmeg into the mixture.

Whisk the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture. Drink immediately.

Local Staples: Flour and Eggs

With several farmers' markets and CSA programs around the city, fresh meats and vegetables are easy to find. Other essentials, like flour, require some gum-shoeing. This week I researched where to buy some local food-staples.
Flour - Treestone Bakery has been featured in articles, like this one by Green Edmonton, and radio reports, like this one by The Dirty Hoe of CJSR, not only for the quality of its products, but for its environmental sensitivity. The daily breads at Treestone are made with whole wheat that is farmed near Leduc and milled on-site with an imported French stone. This flour is sold in one kilo bags for $2. It is a fairly coarse grind, and our preliminary batches of pasta were acceptable, but not great.

For special breads like brioche, Treestone uses white flour milled by Sunny Boy in Camrose. Thankfully you can order some of this flour. I got 5 kg of red spring wheat for $10.

Eggs - Eggs are available at the Strathcona Farmers' Market through vendors like the Holden Colony and Sunworks Farm of Armena, Alberta. They usually sell for about $4 per dozen (compared to $2.60 per dozen at a grocery store: get over it...)

If, however, you find yourself in need of eggs in the middle of the week, when your farmers' market is closed, Planet Organics carries eggs from Purnima Farms in Breton, Alberta. Large Purnima eggs command $5.67 per dozen.