The lighter side of festive cocktails

  • By Sara Moulton Associated Press
  • Tuesday, December 11, 2012 9:18am
  • Life

Back during my days at Gourmet magazine, my many duties included teaching cooking classes. I used to tell my students — especially the cooking-impaired ones — that if they made sure to greet dinner party guests with a special homemade drink, they would always win, no matter what else happened that evening.

Let them buy take-out food, rearrange it artfully on platters, then claim it as their own. Nobody would think twice as long as they were handed a special drink on their way in the door. Festive drinks scream, “Party!”

The holiday season boasts any number of festive libations. My favorite is eggnog. After all, if you’re trying to crystallize holiday excess in liquid form, how better than to combine sweet cream with strong rum or brandy

But what if — just this once — you don’t want to overdo it? How do you cut down the fat and calories in eggnog without losing the drink’s signature richness? More precisely, is there a way to keep it creamy without cream? I tried making eggnog using nonfat milk, both regular and condensed. I even tried thickening the mixture with cornstarch. My daughter Ruthie, a connoisseur of cocktails, rejected both of these strategies.

Non-fat milk made the drink too watery. Cornstarch successfully thickened the drink, but in a way that reminded my expert of a loose pudding, not eggnog.

Ruthie suggested losing the non-fat milk in favor of 2 percent milk, which is still much lighter than cream. That did the trick. Then I added Chai spices, which contributed their own luxurious and exotic notes that work so nicely with the more traditional nutmeg.

My second concoction, Christmas sangria, required much less experimentation, if only because traditional sangria — a mix of wine and fruit — is a fairly healthy punch to begin with. Essentially, all I did was swap out the drink’s usual summertime fruits for their wintertime counterparts — pomegranates, clementines and apples, along with some fresh fruit juice.

Reformatted in this fashion, a warm weather stalwart suddenly looks and tastes just right for the holidays.

Chai eggnog

2cups 2 percent milk, divided

131/2-inch stick cinnamon, smashed using the side of a knife

1/2vanilla bean, split lengthwise

10 whole cloves

1/2teaspoon whole black peppercorns, coarsely crushed

1/2teaspoon ground ginger

4cardamom pods, crushed (or 1/2teaspoon ground cardamom)

Kosher salt

2large eggs

1/4cup sugar

Brandy or rum, for flavoring (optional)

Grated nutmeg, to garnish

In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine 11/2 cups of the milk with the cinnamon, vanilla bean, cloves, peppercorns, ginger, cardamom pods and a hefty pinch of salt. Bring the mixture to a simmer, then turn off the heat and let it stand for 15 minutes.

Strain the mixture through a sieve, discarding all of the solids except for the vanilla bean. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the milk; discard the vanilla pod.

Wipe out the saucepan and return the milk to the pan over medium heat.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl beat the eggs with the sugar for 2 minutes, or until they are light and lemon colored. Add the heated milk in a stream, whisking gently. Return the egg-milk mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until it thickens and coats the back of the spoon, about 4 to 6 minutes. Do not let the mixture come to a simmer or the eggs will scramble.

Quickly add the remaining 1/2 cup of milk to the pan to stop the cooking. Transfer the mixture to a pitcher and chill for at least 2 hours or until very cold.

To serve, divide the eggnog among 4 chilled glasses, stir in a dash of brandy or rum, if desired, and top with a sprinkle of freshly grated nutmeg.

Makes 4 servings. Per serving: 140 calories; 40 calories from fat (29 percent of total calories); 4.5 g fat (2 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 100 mg cholesterol; 16 g carbohydrate; 0 g fiber; 16 g sugar; 7 g protein; 210 mg sodium.

Christmas sangria

1750-milliliter bottle fruity red wine, such as Beaujolais

1/2cup fresh clementine or orange juice

1/2cup unsweetened pomegranate juice

1/2cup Grand Marnier liqueur

1firm pear with the skin, cored and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 2 cups)

2clementines or 1 orange, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise

Seeds from 1 pomegranate

2tablespoons superfine sugar

In a large bowl combine all ingredients and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Chill, tightly covered, at least 8 hours before serving.

Makes 8 servings. Per serving: 180 calories; 0 calories from fat (0 percent of total calories); 0 g fat (0 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 0 mg cholesterol; 24 g carbohydrate; 1 g fiber; 19 g sugar; 1 g protein; 5 mg sodium.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.