Eggnog is a classic holiday drink, with a rich creamy texture and cozy, comforting flavors. Made with cream, egg, and sugar, it’s the perfect base for all sorts of eggnog cocktails, and it is easy to make at home as well as being available pre-made at the store.
It’s a popular drink for winter parties, and it’s ideal for making in large batches for a crowd. But sometimes you’ll end up with bountiful eggnog leftovers, and you’ll find yourself wondering what to do with more eggnog than you can drink.
Can you freeze eggnog?
Let’s cut straight to the chase: yes, you can freeze eggnog. In fact it’s a great way to preserve this drink as it won’t last that long in the fridge.
Most alcoholic beverages last quite well as the alcohol acts as a preservative, preventing them from going bad and extending their life. As long as mixed drinks aren’t carbonated, which will go flat, they will generally last for weeks in the fridge so you can batch up drinks like punches and serve them to your guests without worry. And if you have leftovers after a party then pop them into the fridge to enjoy at a later date.
With eggnog, however, there are many diary ingredients to consider. Ingredients like milk, eggs, and cream will go bad much quicker than fruit juices or sodas, and even with the addition of alcohol, you don’t want to keep dairy-based drinks in the fridge for more than a day or two. This is particularly true of home-made eggnog, as it lacks the preservatives used in store-bought eggnog and will go bad even faster.
But if you have a big batch of eggnog with plenty of leftovers, you don’t need to throw it away. You can freeze it to preserve it until you’re in the mood for some more cozy winter drinks.
How to freeze eggnog
If you’re going to freeze your eggnog, you shouldn’t just put an entire pitcher of it in the freezer. Mainly that will be annoying to defrost when you do want to drink it. An easy solution is to pour the leftover eggnog into large ice cube trays, so you can pop out appropriately sized portions whenever you want them. Once the portions are frozen into solid cubes, you can transfer them into a ziploc bag and keep them in the freezer for several months.
How to defrost eggnog
While it might be tempting to leave frozen eggnog out on the counter to defrost, or to chuck it in the microwave, this isn’t a great idea as leaving the eggnog out for long periods can cause it to go bad. The best option is to put the frozen cubes in a glass or container, then put that container into the fridge and let it defrost slowly.
You might find that your eggnog separates when it defrosts. Sometimes the texture won’t be as good as it originally was before you froze it, because of the way dairy acts in a freezer. If the texture is off then you can try putting the eggnog into a blender to add in some air and froth it back up, or if it is just separated then give it a good stir to recombine it.
It’s important to know the difference between eggnog which is separated and eggnog which is spoiled. If it is separated, there might be several layers of material with some parts being more creamy or more liquid than others, but it should all taste and smell the same as regular eggnog. It’s fine to drink and it just needs to be recombined. But if it smells bad, it tastes tangy or rancid, or if there’s any sign of mold, then the eggnog has spoiled and should not be consumed.
How to enjoy your eggnog
Eggnog is a winter classic and it’s at its best when freshly made at home using real dairy ingredients and freshly ground spices. It’s most often drunk cold, but it’s a delicious winter warmer when drunk hot, perhaps with a shot of spirits such as bourbon as well.
If you have leftover eggnog though, you can find other uses for it too. It’s great added to coffee with some whipped cream to create an eggnog latte, and you can also use it in baking recipes such as for French toast, bread, cookies, or muffins (though you’ll generally want to use the non-alcoholic version for this).
And if you’re an adventurous home bartender, then you can use eggnog in a manner similar to milk or Irish cream, mixing it with spirits like rum, brandy, or bourbon. It makes a delicious addition to a White Russian, or you can use it in dessert cocktails like the Mudslide. Some people even swear by mixing it with sparkling wine to create a frothy fizzy egg cream, though we’ll leave you to be the judge of that one.
