Just as good Starbucks Eggnog Latte | Recipe
A simple eggnog latte recipe
When the weather gets really cold, I get so excited because of the Starbucks holiday drinks menu. I look forward to the peppermint mocha, pumpkin spiced latte, and my all time favorite, the eggnog latte. But sadly Starbucks only has these drinks during winter, so here are a quick recipe on how to diy your own eggnog latte. Be sure to check out my main page for the peppermint hot chocolate recipe. These are two of my go to drinks during the cold season.
Note: This recipe is very simple, so it was a hard decision for me to post it. However, I decided to post it anyway thinking that you guys will enjoy the Tips andTricks and the Education Time sections. I had a lot of fun learning about coffee brewing technique and eggnog history.
Here is the link to the printable recipe
What do I need? (~ 1 serving)
- 1 cup of eggnog (goes for low fat for healthier option)
- 6 tbsp of ground coffee (or 1 cup — 1 ½ cup of brewed coffee)
- ¾ tsp — 1 tsp of sugar
- Pinch of ground nutmeg and cinnamon(optional)
How to?
Skip this step if using brewed coffee. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil. I used an electric kettle to do this. To brew coffee using the pour over method, place a coffee filter into a coffee dripper. Add in 6 tbsp of ground coffee (No coffee dripper, no problem. Check out the Tips and Tricks section). Add just enough hot water to wet all the ground coffee in the filter and wait a couple seconds. Then, slowly pour in (in a small stream) about 1–1 ½ cup of hot water over the ground coffee in a circle motion. When pouring water, start around the edge of the coffee dripper and slowly move in toward the center in a circle motion.
Add sugar and stir until all sugar dissolved. Taste and adjust to your liking. Keep in mind that the eggnog is already sweet so avoid adding too much sugar. A perfect latte has to have a balance of sweetness and coffee bitterness.
Froth up 1 cup of eggnog. To do this, I used my nespresso milk frother. If you don’t have one, check out my Tips and Tricks section. Nesspresso milk frother comes with two frothing attachment and the one I used has a smooth metal coil around it instead of the spiral coil. I choose this frothing attachment because I wanted more eggnog in my latte instead of eggnog foam. Feel free to make it with the other attachment if to get more frothed eggnog foam. For a less rich eggnog latte, use ½ cup of eggnog and ½ cup of milk.
Use a spoon to capture the foam and pour the frothed eggnog into the brewed coffee. Top off the cup with the frothed eggnog foam.
Sprinkle on some nutmeg and cinnamon and enjoy!
Not a coffee lover? Here is a quick modification to make a Chai eggnog latte instead. Replace the ground coffee with 2 tbsp of loose leaf Chai tea mix or 2 Chai tea bags. Brew the tea with 1 ½ cup of hot water for about 5 minutes and continue with step 3.
Tips and Tricks (:P)
What to do with the leftover eggnog
Make Chai eggnog latte, eggnog pancakes, and eggnog french toast with it. To make eggnog pancakes, replace half of the milk amount called for in the pancakes mix with eggnog. To make eggnog french toast, substitute milk with eggnog and add in pinch of ground cinnamon and nutmeg to the batter.
Frothing eggnog w/o a milk frother
There are ways to froth eggnog without a milk frother, the microwave technique and pot method.
For the microwave technique, you will need a microwave and a mason jar with lid. Pour the eggnog into the mason jar and microwave it for 30 seconds WITHOUT the lid. Remove, put the lid on, and shake vigorously until foaming. Remove the lid and return it to the microwave for another 30 seconds. Remove and repeat the steps until it is frothed to the desired consistency. In my experience 1 minutes and 30 seconds works for me. Do not microwave more than 30 seconds at a time. The goal is to froth the eggnog, not burn it.
For the pot method, place the eggnog in a pot. Turn the stove on to low-medium heat. Avoid bringing the eggnog to a boil. The key is to warm up the eggnog without boiling it. While the eggnog is heating up, whisk the eggnog vigorously. Turn of the heat as soon as you see a little steam rising. Continue whisking the eggnog vigorously until it reaches the desired consistency.
Apparently there are many more ways to froth milk. Check out this blog post I found to learn more.
How to brew a perfect cup of coffee using the pour over method
In my opinion, this method one of the most easy way to brew coffee, and it is also a stress reliever. This method requires coffee dripper, filter, and ground coffee. The secret to making a perfect cup of coffee via this method is to wet the coffee ground with just enough hot water prior to pouring in all the hot water, so that the coffee grounds have enough time to bloom. Wetting the coffee ground early allow the water to get into each of the coffee grinds and allows carbon dioxide gas to escape. As the hot water wet each coffee grinds, it dissolve all the unpleasant taste solubles in the beans’ cells.
Additionally, when using an electric kettle to boil water, wait about 30 seconds after the water boil before pouring it over the coffee grounds. Too high temperature water can extract out way too much coffee bitterness. Here is an interesting article that talks about the science behind coffee brewing.
Using instant coffee
Instant coffee works. However since instant coffee is pretty light and not as dark as freshly brewed coffee, I would recommend doubling the called for serving size on the label. If using espresso shot, double the shot and add enough hot water to get to at least 1 cup.
Other option to brew coffee without a coffee dripper
There are many ways to brew a perfect cup of coffee. The easiest way is via a coffee maker. Another ways are via a Vietnamese Coffee Phin, Aeropress, and French press. If you do not have any of this tools, another great option is make cold brew coffee. Here is the link to one of my favorite cold-brewed coffee recipe.
Education Time
The only information I could find about eggnog latte was that it was invented by Dave Olsen in October 1986 when he and his team was trying to come up with a special beverage for Christmas. Dave Olsen is a worker who joined the Starbucks team in early 1980s.
Therefore, let learn about the history of eggnog. It was believed that eggnog beverage originated in Britain around the medieval time, similar to the drink called posset. Posset is a British milk beverage made of wine, beer, cream, sugar, and eggs.
In the 13th century, this beverage becomes popular among monks, who drank it with eggs and figs. Slowly, afterward, it made its way to America where there is a supply of milk and eggs as well as rum, thus the birth of the spiked eggnog. Eggnog was not a Christmas drink until the 19th century.
Fun Facts 😮
- Starbucks has offered the eggnog latte since 1986.
- Starbucks tried to remove the eggnog latte from the menu in 2014 and was forced to bring it back. That is how popular this drink was.
- Eggnog is basically a custard that doesn’t freeze because of the amount of alcohol it contains.
- Eggnog is actually a fermented drink made of eggs, milk, and sugar with some shelve life to get that eggnog flavor. The longer the shelf life, the better the eggnog flavor is according to Alton Brown’s recipe.
