Safety

• Pasteurized eggs or pasteurized egg white substitutes are the safest options for making eggnog because uncooked egg yolks and whites may contain the salmonella bacteria, which is especially dangerous for the elderly, young children and pregnant women. To reduce the risks of salmonella, cook the milk and egg mixture for eggnog until it thickens and coats a spoon, or check the temperature of the heated milk mixture to see that it has reached 160 degrees Fahrenheit.

Milk Mixture

• Begin making eggnog by heating milk in a saucepan with enough sugar to make it sweet. Next, whisk egg yolks, in a ratio of 4 egg yolks to every 2 cups of milk, into half of the milk to warm the yolks gradually before adding the mixture to the saucepan. Cook the mixture, stirring constantly until it thickens and coats a spoon. Refrigerate the mixture, with or without liquor, until it is cold.

Frothing

• Whisk pasteurized egg whites and half as much heavy cream as milk in separate bowls using a metal whisk or an electric mixer. For thick eggnog, whisk both the egg whites and the cream into stiff but not dry peaks. For eggnog with a lighter texture, whip the whites and the cream until they are frothy. Fold the egg whites and cream into the milk mixture to finish the eggnog.

Eggnog Variations

• Different seasonings give eggnog new twists. Espresso or a coffee liqueur cut the creaminess of eggnog, while cinnamon, vanilla and rum warm up the flavor. Make chocolate eggnog by adding chocolate syrup to the milk mixture. To make a quick and low calorie eggnog, melt light, vanilla ice cream and call it eggnog, or froth the melted ice cream mixture in your blender to mimic the texture of traditional eggnog.