Spiked Eggnog

December 02, 2022

This Spiked Eggnog is a delicious and decadent cocktail to serve during the holiday season.

During the holiday season, is there anything more festive than eggnog? Whether you are using homemade eggnog or store-bought eggnog, this spiked eggnog recipe is a must try.

You’ve probably seen the eggnog in the liqueur section of your market that is already spiked with booze. Don’t buy that. It’s not great! The way I’m showing you how to make spiked eggnog will make it taste great. It’s super easy to do. Even though it seems fancy, this eggnog cocktail is fairly simple. In fact, all you need is a few ingredients and you are ready to get into the holiday spirit!

Ingredients needed:

brandy
dark rum
brown sugar
instant espresso powder
eggnog
heavy whipping cream
powdered sugar
vanilla extract
ground nutmeg

While you can make your own eggnog, I prefer to use store bought. Not only can you buy extra creamy eggnog, but I find it more cost effective. The additional cost of having to gather all of the extra ingredients simply isn’t worth it to me.

How to make Spiked Eggnog:

The complete, printable recipe is at the end of this post.

MAKE THE EGGNOG BASE:

In a pitcher, stir the first four ingredients together until the sugar and espresso are dissolved. Stir in the eggnog. Cover and refrigerate. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead)

MAKE THE TOPPING:

In a medium bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the cream, powdered sugar and vanilla together to soft peaks.
Pour the eggnog into punch cups. Top with a dollop of cream, sprinkle with nutmeg and serve.

We add cinnamon sticks as a garnish. That’s totally optional, but they look pretty cute and they’ll impart a small amount of cinnamon flavor into the eggnog!

FAQ’s for spiked eggnog

This drink is so festive and fun! Your guests will be begging you to make them for years to come. Here are a few questions to help you make the best spiked eggnog around:

What are soft peaks?

For a large group, I take a large bowl and mix it with a hand mixer to beat the heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract at medium speed into stiff peaks.

Stiff peaks are when you beat a mixture so much that it is able to stand straight up on its own. This should only take a few minutes and not as complicated as it sounds- I promise!

Because this is a fun way to top the drink, think of it as a whipped cream for your guests to enjoy.

How far in advance should I make the eggnog mixture?

The base of this drink is (of course) the delicious eggnog base. Since I usually take this drink for a big group, the mixture is stored in a pitcher so we have plenty to go around.

I like to take the brandy, dark rum, brown sugar and espresso in a large mixing bowl until the powder has dissolved then add in the eggnog.

Personally, I will try to do this 24 hours before the party so the eggnog base has time to marinate. You can also do it right before serving, the flavors just won’t be as immersed.

If I am making a single spiked eggnog drink, I always prefer to use a cocktail shaker to make cleaning up easier. I just add the ingredients there, shake and serve!

How do I make this drink fancier for the holidays?

For the holidays, I make this drink a lot. Just about any party that I attend will have these drinks for everyone to enjoy! Here’s how I step up my game to make these drinks even fancier.

I pour the drink into martini glasses with either a cinnamon stick at the top or a cinnamon/sugar blend. This is made by mixing a tablespoon of ground cinnamon with one cup of sugar. Their are great ways to make this delicious

Is there an eggnog alternative?

While choosing to use something other than eggnog will reduce some of the flavor, there are other options for your guests that do not include eggnog.

You can substitute your eggnog for 1 cup milk, just heat it up in a large saucepan so that you can serve the drink with hot milk.

Why use Instant Espresso Powder?

Instant espresso powder is delicious when added to this spiked eggnog. Use leftover espresso powder to make things like cookies, brownies and cakes. The espresso really intensifies the flavor of chocolate in baking recipes. You can locate instant espresso powder in your market near the instant coffee. If you would like to use instant coffee instead, that’s okay too. And honestly… if you’re not into coffee, you can leave out the espresso/coffee entirely. Your spiked eggnog will still be amazing!

Holiday Cocktail Recipes:

Spiked Eggnog

The best of all worlds in a holiday drink!

Course Cocktails

Cuisine American

Keyword brandy, coffee, eggnog

Prep Time 10 minutes

Total Time 10 minutes

Servings 8 servings

Calories 243kcal

Author RecipeGirl.com (shared from Bon Appetit)

Ingredients

EGGNOG BASE:

½ cup brandy
3 tablespoons dark rum
2 tablespoons firmly packed golden brown sugar
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder (or instant coffee powder)
4 cups eggnog

TOPPING:

½ cup chilled heavy whipping cream (liquid)
¼ cup powdered sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
freshly ground nutmeg