The holidays are one of my favorite times of the year. Eggnog pie is one of my favorites. As anything eggnog is something I enjoy during the Christmas and New Years’ time of the year. When I was younger I would make homemade eggnog each year for Christmas eve. Then, when I was an adult I figured out that it was more expensive to make it than it was to purchase it already made. Make sure you enjoy this delicious crumble pie this holiday season.
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The History Behind Eggnog
Eggnog is historically known (when alcoholic beverages are added) as milk punch or egg milk punch. It is a creamy, refridgerated, sweetened, dairy-based drink. It is normally made with milk, cream, sugar, egg whites that are whipped, and the egg yolks (which gives it a thicker texture and its name). Sometimes brandy, rum, whisky, or bourbon are added to the drink for an alcoholic choice.
All over Canada and the US, eggnog is normally enjoyable over the Christmas season and into the New Year celebration. Ponche Crema is made and drank in Venezuela and Trinidad since the 1900s, also as part of the holiday times. During this time, factory prepared eggnog is sold in grocery stores in these countries.
Eggnog can also be homemade using milk, sugar, eggs, and rum type flavorings served with spices such as nutmeg or cinnamon. While eggnog is often served cold, in some cases, it is warmed, particularly on cold days. Just like the way mulled wine is served warm in the fall or early holiday seasons. Eggnog or eggnog flavoring may also be used in other drinks, such as lattes, milkshakes, tea, or dessert foods egg-custard puddings.
Culinary Historians and The Eggnog Debate
While culinary historians debate its exact background, most agree eggnog came from the medieval” British drink called posset, which was made with hot curdled milk with wine or ale and flavored with spices. In the Middle Ages, posset was used for colds the flu as an antidote. Posset was popular from medieval times to the 19th century. Eggs were added to some posset recipes; according to Time magazine, by the “13th century, monks were known to drink a posset with figs and eggs.” A 17th-century recipe for “My Lord of Carlisle’s Sack-Posset” uses a heated mixture of cream, whole cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, eighteen egg yolks, eight egg whites, and one pint of Sack wine which is kind of like sherry. In the end, sugar, resin, and animal musk are stirred in. Posset was normally served in two-handled pots. The aristocracy had costly posset pots made of silver.
Eggnog Pie with Gingerbread Crumble
Ingredients
Pie
- 1 refrigerated pie crust
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 2 cups eggnog
- ½ cup unsalted butter, cubed
- 1 tsp rum extract
- ½ tsp nutmeg
Gingerbread Crumble
- 15 Gingersnap cookies
- ½ cup flour
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup oats
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup cold butter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- In a small saucepan add the sugar and cornstarch.
- Stir to combine.
- Whisk in the eggnog until smooth.
- Bring the mixture to a low boil.
- Reduce the heat and cook for 2 minutes.
- Stirring constantly
- Remove the saucepan from the heat; add in the butter and extract.
- Stir until the butter is melted and smooth.
- Pour the pie mixture into the pie crust.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes.
- In a medium bowl, add the gingersnaps, flour, sugar, oats, and cinnamon.
- Stir to combine.
- Add your chopped butter to your mixture.
- Using your hands combine the butter with the mixture.
- Make sure there are no chunks of butter and its small crumbs.
- Add the crumble on top of the pie and bake for another 5 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition
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Enjoy these dessert recipes too while you are here.
- Easy Homemade Gingerbread Sheet Cake Recipe
- Magical Cranberry Dark Chocolate Bars
- Grinch Cocoa Bombs- Cindy Lou Who’s Favorite
Have you tried to make this with Silk Eggnog?
Can it be made and then frozen?
Hi Mindy.
Sorry for the wait in responding. From everything I have read, you should be able to exchange out the non-silk eggnog for the silk eggnog without a huge issue.
As far as freezing, absolutely—however, the pie needs to be completely cooled, which will take at least a few hours. (If you cheat on the cooling step, the quality of the frozen pie will be compromised—you might have a soggy crust and extra ice crystals.) Wrap the cooled pie in a few layers of plastic wrap to cover, then wrap the whole package with heavy-duty foil to hold it all together. Freeze on a flat surface.
Also: baking the pie in a disposable aluminum pie plate will result in a faster freeze and potentially fewer ice crystals—which affect flavor big-time as the pie thaws.
How long do you can freeze for: The pie can remain frozen, properly wrapped, for at least two weeks
How to defrost the pie after freezing:
There’s only one place to thaw a frozen pumpkin pie and that’s in the refrigerator. The night before serving—or at least 12 hours beforehand—remove the foil and plastic wrap, then set the pie on a flat surface in the refrigerator to thaw. Once completely thawed, remove the pie from the refrigerator and bring it to room temperature. Letting the pie defrost slowly prevents it from “weeping” (where beads of water form on top) and resulting in a soggy crust. If you do find yourself with water droplets on top of your pie, don’t worry—either carefully blot dry or cover the whole top with whipped cream!
I hope this helps.