Matt Preston makes festive cocktails

In Europe they might celebrate chilly Christmases with mulled wine, vin chaud or gluhwein but in the US no home is really hospitable and worthy of flying a giant Stars and Stripes outside the front door unless there's a generous bowl of eggnog greeting the guests in the front hall.

Eggnog is like a very alcoholic custard which appeals to the country that popularised Santa Claus and loves everything sweet 'n' creamy! And this recipe is richer than Donald Trump! It's also the perfect drink for us here as it is sold cold.

Making eggnog is much a part of the American Christmas and New Year's Day tradition as turkey is part of their Thanksgivings. It has been so since the 1800s but milk and egg-based drinks actually date back to the Renaissance. Then surpluses of eggs could be kept a little longer by mixing with booze – well that was the excuse anyway.

The British drank "posset" and given the English etymology of the name it is likely that it is from here that eggnog was exported to the US; even though alcoholic egg creams were well known in Holland, Belgium, Russia and Poland.

This theory is supported by the fact that British adventurer Captain John Smith writes about the early US settlers in Jamestown drinking eggnog as early as 1607. The American evolution of eggnog used rum or bourbon, both of which were easier to get hold of than the traditional brandy, and it is this version of which first president George Washington was a big fan. I was given my eggnog recipe by a top TV exec called Matt in Hollywood and I like it because it uses not only brandy but also rum and bourbon, making it a true cultural artefact.

It is also quite boozy.

Hollywood eggnog recipe

And, of course, the other great advantage to making eggnog for an Australian Christmas is that you'll have loads of egg whites left over to make your Christmas pavlova!

Every occasion needs a "party starter" and when you can't persuade LMFAO or Lady Gaga to do a live set in your front room, here's my alternative.

It's called a champagne cocktail but it works as well, if not better, with cheap Aussie sparkling because the sugar, bitters and brandy hide any faults in the wine.

Champagne cocktail recipe

And, of course you must have an adult non-alcoholic drink for those straight-edgers and designated drivers. My cranberry cooler is pretty good all the time – not just Christmas.

Cranberry cooler recipe

Follow Matt Preston on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mattscravat

Information in this article is correct as of 13 December, 2011

Matt Preston writes for the taste section, available every Tuesday in The Courier Mail, The Daily Telegraph, and Herald Sun, every Wednesday in The Advertiser and in Perth's Sunday Times.

Source

Taste.com.au — December 2011

Author

Matt Preston