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Homemade Eggnog Recipe: Easier Than You’d Think

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After just one taste, folks will know this holiday treat is homemade, not a store-bought variety. – Pat Waymire, Yellow Springs, Ohio, Field Editor Taste of Home Best Loved Recipes

Homemade Eggnog

12 eggs
1-1/2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 quarts whole milk, divided
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 cups heavy whipping cream
Additional nutmeg, optional

1. In a heavy 4-qt. saucepan, whisk together eggs, sugar and salt. Gradually add 1 qt. of milk. Cook and stir over low heat until a thermometer reads 160°-170°, about 30-35 minutes.

2. Pour into a large heatproof bowl; stir in the vanilla, nutmeg and remaining milk. Place bowl in an ice-water bath, stirring frequently until mixture is cool. If mixture separates, process in a blender until smooth. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.

3. When ready to serve, beat cream in a large bowl on high until soft peaks form; whisk gently into cooled milk mixture. Pour into a chilled 5-qt. punch bowl. Sprinkle with nutmeg if desired.

Editor’s Note: Eggnog may be stored, covered, in the refrigerator for several days. Whisk before serving.

Yield: 3-1/2 quarts
Prep: 50 min. + chilling

The recipe above is just one of the gazillion recipes in one of the best cookbooks of all time, Taste of Home Best Loved Recipes. Click the above link to order your copy or click the following link to read my Taste of Home Best Loved Recipes Review. Not only would this cookbook make an EXCELLENT Christmas (or Wedding, birthday, Mother’s Day or Father’s Day…) gift – it’s one you’ll want to add to your own cookbook collection.

Whether you’re new to the wonderful world of cooking or have been cooking for more years than you care to count, you can consider this a must have cookbook.

About Taste of Home

Taste of Home is America’s connection to the personal recipes of people who cook at home as a way to bring family and friends together, particularly at the holidays. Each year, thousands of people from across the United States and Canada submit more than 40,000 recipes, of which 3,000 are published. Every recipe that is published is carefully evaluated and selected by the Taste of Home Test Kitchen, which ensures that it can be prepared with affordable, everyday ingredients. Taste of Home content is available in print; online at Tasteofhome.com; in books; via digital download on iPad, mobile apps and Kindle; and Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. Obtain a subscription at www.TasteofHome.com or on your favorite digital download device.

Warm Mulled Wine

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Warm Mulled Wine by Marcus Samuelsson

Marcus Samuelsson’s Warm Mulled Wine

1 piece star anise
2 cinnamon sticks, broken into pieces
8 whole cloves
4 cardamom pods
1 small piece ginger, peeled (1 tablespoon of the piece grated)
1 orange (half of the orange slice, half grated for zest)
1/2 cup vodka
2 1/2 cups dry red wine
2 1/2 cups ruby port or Madeira
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup blanched whole almonds
1/2 cup dark raisins

Instructions:
1. Crush the cinnamon and cardamom using a mortar and pestle (or put them on a cutting board and crush them with the bottom of a heavy pot). Put them in a small glass jar and add the ginger, orange zest, cloves, and vodka. Let stand for 24 hours.

2. Strain the vodka through a fine sieve into a large saucepan; discard the spices. Add the red wine, port or Madeira, sugar, almonds, raisins, and star anise, and heat over medium heat just until bubbles start to form around the edges.

3. Serve the wine hot in mugs, with a few almonds and raisins in each glass; keep any remaining wine warm over very low heat until ready to serve – do not let boil!

The above recipe was graciously shared with our readers by the super cool people at A Bullseye View.   Visit their wonderful site for more decorating tips, recipes, beauty, and shopping.  Lots and lots of shopping fun!

Marcus Samuelsson Cookbooks and Cookware:

You can find more Marcus Samuelsson recipes, on Food Network’s website. There’s a recipe for Swedish Meatballs with Spicy Plum Sauce that I’ve bookmarked. How delicious does that sound?!?!

Blueberry Mint Lemonade

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7 cups Ocean Spray® Blueberry Juice Cocktail
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves, washed
1 12-ounce can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed

Combine 1/2 cup of the blueberry juice cocktail with the mint leaves in large (at least 2-quart) nonmetal pitcher or container. Crush the mint leaves against the side and bottom of the container with a wooden spoon. Let stand 5 minutes. Stir in remaining juice cocktail and the lemonade concentrate. Pour into glasses over ice. Garnish with extra mint leaves, if desired.

Makes 8 servings.

How to Make a Banana Smoothie

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I bought a new blender yesterday with one thing in mind – Smoothies! I’ve tried out a few and I’m completely hooked. So far, my favorites are Blueberry Smoothies, Strawberry Smoothies, and Banana Smoothies.

A banana smoothie is a healthy, quick cold treat that you can make any time of year, not just in summer. There are a variety of ways to make a banana smoothie, but in this article we’ll stick with the basics.

Here are the tools and utensils you’ll need to make your banana smoothie:

  • A blender
  • Knife to cut up your banana
  • Serving glasses
  • Measuring cups

And here are the ingredients that we’ll be using to make our banana smoothie:

  • 1 ripe banana
  • 1 cup of crushed ice
  • 1 cup of cold milk
  • 1 tbsp of brown sugar

Here’s how to make the perfect banana smoothie every time

Some people like to freeze their banana first before adding it to the blender, but I find it turns out great using a regular room temperature banana.

Peel your banana and break it or cut it up into pieces and add it to your blender. Then pour in the ice, milk and add the brown sugar.

Turn on your blender and hold the top of the lid firmly in place. This is important because with something hard like ice inside, there’s a possibility that the lid could get knocked off and then you’d end up with a mess. If you don’t have crushed ice, use ice cubes instead, but pulse the blender a few times to break the ice cubes into smaller pieces.

Blending time should take about 30-60 seconds, but make sure your banana smoothie has a smooth creamy texture before serving.

When the mixture is finished blending, pour it out into a glass and if you decide to use a straw to drink from, use bigger straws to make it easier.

Video: How to make a banana smoothie

(I have no idea who this is in the video below – I just thought it might be helpful for my readers!)

I’ve become a Smoothie addict, so you’ll be seeing plenty of smoothie recipes, tips, and what not. I’m working on iced coffee drinks as well…. I’ll bet you already assumed that. So transparent.