Kick Up Your Eggnog With Chai

I have an issue with most premade, bottled drinks. Since they are made quickly and in a factory, they always need to take short cuts to try and match the flavor of the real stuff. This usually involves using chemicals or other ingredients that have scientific names that no one can pronounce. Eggnog falls into this category. To try real eggnog, you need to make it from scratch, with real eggs and fresh milk and spices and to kick it up a bit, the following recipe uses our Kashmiri Chai to enhance the flavors that are in it.

Chai uses similar spices as eggnog

Both eggnog and Chai have spice notes of cloves and cinnamon. By adding Chai to your eggnog, you not only enhance these flavors, but also add in the tangy cardamom and the richness of the Black Tea. This combination gives you a more complex tasting eggnog, perfect for those times you are sitting around a fire with friends and family.

Ingredients

(Makes 1 quart. Serves 4-6 people)

4 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
3 cups whole milk
Dash of cinnamon
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons Bourbon (optional)
2 tablespoons Brandy (optional)
1 large tablespoon Kashmiri Chai

What to Do

Beat the egg yolks in a large bowl with an electric mixer. Slowly add the sugar as you mix.
Slowly heat the milk, cloves and cinnamon in a saucepan. Heat until the milk starts steaming, but does not boil.
Add half of the hot milk mixture to the eggs while whisking. This step prevents the eggs from cooking and becoming scrambled eggs.
Pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan
Add the Chai
Cook on medium to low heat until the liquid becomes thick. Be sure not to boil it. You know it is ready when the mixture coats the back of a spoon.
Remove from the heat and stir in the cream. Strain the mixture.
Mix in the vanilla extract, nutmeg and alcohol (if you are using it)
Chill and serve!

P.S. – If your eggnog breaks while cooking it (looking lumpy with bits of scrambled egg) you can fix it by immediately putting it in a blender and mixing it on high until it is smooth.

Photo: www.flickr.com/photos/sweetbeetandgreenbean