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Hold on to your socks with this homemade old-school eggnog recipe from Mount Vernon, George Washington’s estate. There’s a good story to go with it,too.
Eggnog was certainly popular during colonial times. Brought over fromBritain (and going back to medieval times), eggnogwas a special-occasion drink due to its ingredients (milk, eggs, alcohol), which were quite expensive at the time.
According to kitchen records, George Washington served an eggnog-like drink loaded with alcohol to visitors at Mount Vernon. Below is his recipe, supposably penned in his own hand. We added ingredient amounts since folks tended to estimate back then.
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George Washington EggnogRecipe
“One-quart cream, one-quart milk, one dozen tablespoons sugar, one-pint brandy, ½ pint rye whiskey, ½ pint Jamaica rum, ¼ pint sherry – mix liquor first, then separate yolks and whites of 12 eggs, add sugar to beaten yolks, mix well.
Add milk and cream, slowly beating. Beat whites of eggs until stiff and fold slowly into mixture. Let set in cool place for several days. Taste frequently.”
So, is this Washington’s recipe in his own hand? Although widely circulated as being true, it isn’t very likely.We contacted Mount Vernon’s librarians, who said no eggnog recipe has been definitively linked to Washington. It did not come from George or Martha Washington’s papers. It was not in Martha’s cookbook (which she inherited from her first marriage), nor was it provided in her personal copy of TheArt of CookerybyHannah Glasse, the popular English cookbook in America at thetime.
The recipe above is indeed a true vintage recipe. However, it’s believed to come from the 19th century, whereas George Washingtonlived in the 18thcentury.
Mount Vernon EggnogRecipe
Wedo have another homemadeeggnog recipe kindly shared by Mount Vernon, as eggnogwas indeed a popular drink in thelatter half of the 18thcentury.
We’ve slightly adapted this recipe to make the ingredient amounts clear. We recommend preparing the mixture a day in advance so it’s well chilled. It’s wellworth it! The grocery store stuff isn’t even the sameanimal.
Ingredients:
- 12 eggs (pasteurized if possible), roomtemperature
- 1/2 cupsugar
- One-fifth bourbon (750mlbottle)*
- 1/2 teaspoonsalt
- 1-quart whippingcream
- Optional: 1 cupmilk
- 1 to 2 teaspoons nutmeg, freshly grated (notground)
*Note: You can adjust the amount of alcohol in this recipe or omitit altogether. Or, use a different alcohol on hand; common choices include brandy, rum, bourbon, or whisky. One eggnog recipe we enjoy (from the 1950s) uses “1 cup bourbon and 1 cup Cognac” instead of the one-fifthbourbon.
Directions:
- Separate the egg whites and yolks very carefully, ensuring there is no yolk in the whites. Cover the egg whites and store them in therefrigerator.
- Whisk egg yolks and sugar in a large bowl. (Or, use an electric or stand mixture with a whisk attachment.) Whip until thick and smooth; it should be lemon yellow in color in 5 to 7minutes.
- Slowly add the desired alcohol to a large bowl while beating at a slow speed. Scrape down the side of the bowl. Chill mixture for several hours orovernight.
- In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites and salt until almoststiff.
- Whip the cream untilstiff.
- Fold the whipped cream into the yolk mixture, then fold in the beaten egg whites. Chill for onehour.
- When ready to serve, sprinkle the top with freshly grated nutmeg. Serve in punch cups with aspoon.
- Add 1 cup of milk to the yolk mixture for a thinner eggnog ifdesired.
MoreRecipes
- It turns out George Washington WAS known to make a cherry bounce, a brandy-based drink also popular in the eighteenth century. We can say, in complete confidence, that this festive alcoholic drink recipe is straight from the Washingtons; it was ahand-written recipe card in Martha Washington’s notebook.Discover George Washington’s Cherry Bounce.
- Prefer a non-alcoholic eggnog? Here’s a recipe for Non-Alcoholic Eggnog.
- Need a Christmas cake to wash that down?Here’sMarthaWashington’s “Great Cake”recipebakedfor celebrating what she called “a true Virginia Christmas” at MountVernon.
See 10 Christmas Drink and co*cktail Recipes!
