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’Net Junkie Shawn "Speedy" Lopes |
Stir up eggnog
recipes, historyCooler weather is a pleasant plus, and the giving and receiving of presents adds a nice touch. But another fine reason to look forward to the holiday season is the return of that sweet, slightly spicy and creamy beverage known as eggnog. The Christmastime drink that is unreasonably difficult to find any other time of the year is suddenly available most anywhere you go. Supermarkets begin carting out cartons of the holiday elixir just around Thanksgiving, along with eggnog-flavored cookies, cake, coffee, yogurt, milk and ice cream. Not to be outdone, fast-food eateries proudly announce the arrival of eggnog shakes by hanging tempting photo banners in their drive-throughs, usually in early December.
Yet little is known about this holiday treat, which has sent me directly to my computer for a bit of research. Unfortunately, a cursory search revealed nothing really funny, fascinating or outrageous on the subject, despite the fact that eggnog is a drink often mixed with alcohol and known to cause the occasional upchuck when consumed in large quantities. You'd think a drunken eggnog tale or a collection of embarrassing photos would be commonplace on the 'Net. Not so.
If you are interested in eggnog's background, there are a number of sites worth a gander. For starters, try www.indepthinfo.com/eggnog/history.shtml, which offers a brief history of the holiday brew, along with interesting facts. Apparently, our first president, George Washington, enjoyed eggnog quite a bit. His version of the drink was a wicked concoction of rye whiskey, rum and sherry.
The site warns that there is a 1-in-10,000 chance that the eggs used in eggnog could contain a harmful bacteria and that the best way to avoid food poisoning is to slowly heat the eggs to 160 degrees Fahrenheit beforehand.
Also available are recipes for variations on eggnog, including Rich Eggnog (eggs, sugar, brandy, cream, milk, icing sugar and nutmeg), Orange Nonalcoholic Eggnog Float and, for those who either cannot or will not consume eggs, Eggless Eggnog. You can even find a low-calorie eggnog recipe at www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/bv/holiday/bv-hol001.shtml.
Of course, if you'd rather spare yourself the hassle, there's still time to get in a few drive-through shakes before you start making your New Year's resolutions in a couple of weeks.
Note: Web sites mentioned in this column were active at time of publication. The Honolulu Star-Bulletin neither endorses nor is responsible for their contents.
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’Net Junkie drops every Monday.
Contact Shawn "Speedy" Lopes at slopes@starbulletin.com.
