I was walking through Walmart for my weekly shopping trip on Friday, picking up milk, when I saw it. There, for the first time this season, for two dollars and fifty cents: eggnog.
I will admit, I have a problem. Though I really don’t have any intention of solving this one.
Hot cocoa is good, hot cider is better, but none of them speak to me of the colder seasons in the same way that eggnog does.
Now I know a lot of people are going to give me flack for starting so early. It’s not even Thanksgiving yet! I used to be one of those holiday purists, who wouldn’t dream of touching anything so wintery until after Thanksgiving out of respect for turkey-Americans across the country.
Then, two summers ago, I went on a co-op. I could talk about the despondency of being away from friends and family during the holiday season, but I promised Samm this would be a happy editorial.
Across the street from my apartment was a Kroger, so the first week there I got the rewards card and that’s where I did my grocery shopping. About this time, under about the same circumstances, I saw my first carton of eggnog for the season.
At first, I dismissed it. I thought to myself, “It’s too early for eggnog.” But then a second thought occurred to me.
“Who’s going to stop me?”
After all, I’m working twenty hours of overtime a week, so I could certainly afford it. I’d already lost 15 pounds over the summer with all the physical labor of the job, so my health couldn’t suffer that much. And it looked really good.
So I bought the quart and finished it in three days. Proud of my restraint in making it last that long, I went back and bought another half gallon, and so on, and so on…
I drank a truly tremendous amount of eggnog, but by the time the season was over I too was ready to move past my love for the sweet goodness of my beverage of choice. Winter turned to spring, spring turned to summer but then summer turned into fall, and I found myself in this same position last year.
As soon as the temperature dropped below 40 I knew it was time. I was ready for eggnog. Unfortunately, my budget wasn’t.
As anyone who buys their own groceries knows, eggnog isn’t exactly the cheapest of beverages, and there’s a big gap between what you can afford working 80 hours a week and what you can afford studying 80 hours a week.
The solution was simple: we started making eggnog. I used Alton Brown’s recipe, but not the aged or the cooked versions, largely because I have no impulse control or concern for my own health, which should be evident based on everything I’ve said in the last 400 words.
So we made eggnog, and it turned out pretty good. There was a lot of foam on top, but once you stirred it in it just added fluff and creaminess.
Making the eggnog was significantly cheaper, but more effort. Associating the effort of making eggnog with the sweetness of its consumption helped cut back on my intake last year; we’ll see if that holds true this year as well.
I strongly suspect it won’t. We’ve actually got a pitcher at the house this semester so I won’t have to make it in a popcorn bowl, which makes pouring it quite a bit easier.
Plus, this semester I’m living with more people that are interested in drinking eggnog, and therefore interested in funding eggnog making.
Based on some back-of-the-envelope calculations, it costs me about $2.50 to make half a gallon of eggnog. Split five ways, that’s 50 cents per glass. That is always a bargain I will take.
Of course, that’s before you add the alcohol.
A word of caution to any who might be adding alcohol to eggnog for the first time: be sparing. It’s very easy for the strong flavors of bourbon or rum to overwhelm the more delicate creaminess of eggnog.
That said, if you do it right, defintiely worth it.
So happy fall everyone! I hope your autumn nights are as filled with good drinks and good company as mine.
