[xoxoxoBruce]

One opinion.

It all began in England, where eggnog was the trademark drink of the upper class. "You have to remember, the average Londoner rarely saw a glass of milk," says author/historian James Humes (July 1997, "To Humes It May Concern"), former speech writer and adviser to four presidents. "There was no refrigeration, and the farms belonged to the big estates. Those who could get milk and eggs to make eggnog mixed it with brandy or Madeira or even sherry." But it became most popular in America, where farms and dairy products were plentiful, as was rum. Rum came to these shores via the Triangular Trade from the Caribbean; thus it was far more affordable than the heavily taxed brandy or other European spirits that it replaced at our forefather's holiday revels."

An English creation, it descended from a hot British drink called posset, which consists of eggs, milk, and ale or wine. The recipe for eggnog (eggs beaten with sugar, milk or cream, and some kind of spirit) has traveled well, adapting to local tastes wherever it has landed. In the American South, bourbon replaced ale (though nog, the British slang for strong ale, stuck). Rich, strong eggnog — the richer and stronger, the better — is no stranger to holiday celebrations in New Orleans, and at this time of year the drink takes its place alongside syllabubs on the traditional southern table. (Syllabub is a less potent mixture than eggnog but just as rich. Made with milk, sugar and wine, it straddles the line between drink and liquid dessert.)

Another.

The earliest eggnog recipe I’ve uncovered was a first century egg sponge published and copyrighted by the Archaeological Institute of America in 2001.

Mix together the following:
3 eggs
1 1/8 cup milk
1 oz olive oil
Put a little olive oil into a shallow pan and bring it to a boil. Pour in egg mixture. When the mixture is done on one side, turn it out onto a serving dish and then coat it with honey and cracked pepper.

This recipe is based on the work of author Edith Evans of the Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological Trust who wrote of Roman cookery ("Dining with the Ancients," pp. 54-61). In her article, Evans used the recipes of the famous Roman chef and author Apicius. Even this recipe has been “slightly revised” by the editors of the Archeological Institute of America.