Eggnog

Beat eggs until very pale, quite a long time. With beaters going, add sugar slowly until it’s all incorporated into the eggs. Add the milk while beating slowly.

Put the egg mixture into the top of a double boiler. I use a stainless steel bowl on top of a sauce pot. Don’t let the water in the bottom pot boil, just lightly simmer. If it boils, you may cook the egg in spots. I keep the bowl covered until the temperature approaches 140. Keep scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula so you don’t cook the eggs. Heat until the temperature reaches 140 and then stays at or above 140 for 3 minutes, or until the temperature reaches 160, whichever comes first.

Once it reaches the temperature (either 140 for 3 minutes or 160), immediately remove from the heat and cool it down for a little while in an ice bath. Strain mixture through sieve into a larger bowl — I use the one that had the ice in it. This will remove any cooked bits of egg. Stir in the vanilla, brandy and rum.

Whip cream to the soft peak stage — when you pull out the beaters, the peak of cream curls over or flops a bit. Fold the cream into your nog. It will look clumpy, that’s fine, you’ll give it a good stir (or whisk) before serving.

Pour into a pitcher, cover with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator to chill a few hours. Or, if you can’t wait (it’s been known to happen), serve warm in mugs. Before serving, give it a good whisk or stir so the whipped cream blends in. Serve chilled in a festive glass. Top each glass with grated fresh nutmeg.