Name: Christmas Eggnog Cookies
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 10 min
Ingredients: 1 cup butter, (softened); 3/4 cup sugar; 1 cup brown sugar, (lightly packed); 2 large eggs; 1/4 cup eggnog; 1 teaspoon rum or vanilla extract; 4 cups all purpose flour; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 1 teaspoon cream of tartar; 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg; 8 tablespoons sugar; 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg

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A soft, chewy cookie prepared with eggnog and rum. Christmas Eggnog Cookies are loaded with nutmeg too, which makes them taste extra eggnog-y! They aren’t too pretty to look at, but they taste marvelous!

An eggnog cookie had to be a part of this series. Last year, I shared my Eggnog Bundt Cake, and just a few weeks ago, I posted my recipe for Eggnog Biscotti. Not everyone is a fan of drinking eggnog – me included – but, when it comes to baking with it, I’m in!

Before we get too into it, it might come as no surprise to my readers that I’m back with a third installment of Lord Byron’s 24 Cookies of Christmas. Should you be new here, let me tell you a bit about how this works. This is my third annual Christmas cookie extravaganza. Like the previous two years, I will post a brand new Christmas cookie recipe for 24 consecutive days. Yes, that means Saturdays and Sundays too! For your reference, you can find links to the first two years further down the page.

Fresh off of my 12 Biscotti of Christmas series, I’m excited to get this new series started. Last year, I also did 12 Bundt Cakes of Christmas. Now, who’s ready to get started on this journey with me? Do you have any eggnog left, or did you already drink it all? Have you decided whether you’re using rum or extract? Do you have lots of nutmeg on hand? Is your apron on and your oven preheated? Good! Let’s get to it!

EGGNOG – LOVE IT OR HATE IT?

There seems to be only two classes of people when it comes to eggnog. We either love it or we hate it. There’s rarely a person who’s in between. Personally, I can’t drink it, but I love the flavour. It’s a little too thick for my liking. That’s why I prefer to bake with it – point in case, Christmas Eggnog Cookies!

For this recipe, you’ll need just over a quarter cup of eggnog. Most of the prepared eggnog that I see in stores are sold in one litre bottles. That’s a lot of eggnog if you’re purchasing it only to bake with.

You can substitute the eggnog if you wish. Since eggnog is thick and creamy, you’ll want something that has a similar consistency. If you want to use milk, use a whole, fatty milk. I would not recommend using anything less than 3%. Alternatively, you can use half and half.

The best substitute that I have found for eggnog in baking is buttermilk. Not only is the consistency present, but I like the tangy flavour of the buttermilk in baked goods too. If you’re adding the little bit of whiskey, fatty milk or buttermilk will do the trick nicely.

LET’S CALL IT CHRISTMAS CHEER!

Oftentimes, any drink that is alcohol based and served at Christmastime is referred to as Christmas cheer. Alcohol is quite common in baked goods, especially at this time of year. I don’t tend to cook or bake with alcohol much, because we don’t drink. Because we don’t drink, we never have alcohol in the house.

I made an exception for these Christmas Eggnog Cookies and purchased a bottle of rum. Not knowing anything about rum, I just grabbed the brand that I have heard of the most. My ex wife and her dad would often drink Lamb’s. I never did partake, but I remembered the brand well enough to go with it.

If you’re not a fan of using alcohol in your baking, you can easily substitute it. In the place of the rum, use vanilla extract instead. Since eggnog already has a strong vanilla flavour, it will be perfect. Alternatively, if you want to use alcohol, but don’t have rum, you can use brandy or even a bit of bourbon.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR COOKIES EXTRA SPECIAL

As you can see, I simply rolled the cookies into a cinnamon and nutmeg mixture before baking them. This intensifies the nutmeg flavour and gives the cookies a little bit of sparkle. Once the cookies are out of the oven, I like to grate over a little bit more fresh nutmeg.

You can buy a whole nutmeg. They look like really fat raw almonds. Use a nutmeg grater to get it just perfect. This is the one I have. You can store your unused whole nutmeg right inside it. Of course, store-bought ground nutmeg will work too. Be scant; the flavour can be intense!

If you prefer, you can glaze the cookies too. Simply whisk together two cups of confectioner’s sugar with 3-4 tablespoons of eggnog, or until the glaze is at your desired consistency. Drizzle over cooled cookie and allow them to set. I opted to keep mine plain, because I’m quite fond of the dimpled cookie effect.

STORING, PACKAGING, AND FREEZING

If you plan to freeze these cookies, you certainly can! Once they are completely cooled, pile them into a clean, food-safe container. The container must be freezer friendly! You’ll want to ensure a very tight fitting lid too. (I use these quite often when freezing baked goods.) I like to place a sheet of plastic wrap over the top of the container before pushing the lid on. This helps to create a better seal. The goal is to keep all of that cookie freshness locked in!

You can freeze these cookies for up to three months. If you plan to give the frozen cookies as a gift, I would lay them out onto a wire cooling rack to thaw. Once thawed, pile into cellophane bags and tie with a ribbon, or stack in a cookie tin/box.

CONCLUSION:

As I said, every day I will be posting a new recipe. If you miss one, don’t fret. You can find my entire collection of Christmas Recipes right here! There are over 100 Christmas recipes and counting. There’s something for everyone! Cheers!

If you loved this recipe, here are some others that might interest you as well:

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