Just in time for 12th Night! ~ Bourbon Milk Punch

Bourbon Milk Punch! Photographic origins unknown!

I love milk punch! This relatively old recipe is one that never seems to lose its intrigue and in my mind is a too often overlooked staple of the holiday season. I'd had it many times, but had forgotten about it over the course of many years as delicious organic eggnog became so readily available in the stores. However my good friend Justin taunted me one day with the promise of a homemade milk punch that would swear me off of eggnog forever. I waited and waited and then one day he waltzed into my Solstice party with two bottles of a wonderfully thick looking wintry white drink! 

He intrigued me with tales of it's creation, how it had been carefully mixed, re-poured and allowed to mellow for three days in a deep chilly snow bank. I opened the bottle and poured a small glass. It was incomparable, a divine taste of nostalgia and yet so completely modern as to be deemed one of the sexiest flavors that I'd ever put to these lips! At first taste there was ice cold cream and vanilla but seconds later I was captivated by the flavor of a  really great Bourbon laced with a liberal sprinkling of sugar and nutmeg...irresistible!

I was blown away, how could anyone thing taste so good?

 I have begged him for the recipe which he will not divulge. So, I have played with the recipe myself and I must admit that I think that I've done the memory of that first sip justice. Milk Punch is an ancient drink that has changed many times over the centuries. Some recipes call for lemon juice but I don't like those. I prefer the experience of pure cream on snow with a bit of lemon zest for sunshine, bourbon for frolicking and lots of fresh spice for warmth. 

This recipe makes a wonderful gift to bring with you to winter gatherings. My pal delivers his in old  fashioned glass milk bottles with a request to save them for next year and promising refills! He walked into my Winter Solstice gathering the other night with two of those bottles and at first sip I was smitten again! Treat yourself and use organic milk , half and half and cream. You'll get the great glass bottles that way and a much richer flavor and the benefit will be that you can start your own holiday tradition but be warned , once you make this you'll never be allowed to stop, it's that good!

For about 18 cups of heaven you will need:

4 quarts of organic whole milk

3 cups of organic half and half

2 pints of organic whipping cream

4 cups of really good Bourbon ( I splurge and use Woodford Reserve on this one)

2 heaping cups of confectioners sugar

3 tablespoons of organic vanilla extract

3 heaping tablespoons of freshly grated lemon zest

1 teaspoon of black pepper

Lots (and I really do mean lots!) of freshly grated nutmeg to taste

Simply pour the milk, half and half and cream into a bowl and blend for a few seconds. Add the Bourbon , sugar and vanilla, blend for a minute until frothy. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir. If you were bottling this and you have lovely winters snow on your hands I'd tell you to place the full bottles outside in the drifts as this will make the finished product thick and slushy! (You'll need one extra bottle to accommodate the overflow!) Sans snow, simply place the bottles in the refrigerator and allow to chill! You can even put a bottle in the freezer for about an hour before serving and it makes the finished product wonderfully creamy! 

Allow enough time for the finished punch to mellow for about two days before serving or the Bourbon will taste too raw. To serve, just pour the milk punch into a julep cup or a punch glass and enjoy! If it's cold enough, no ice will be needed! If you're making it for a party, put it into a punch bowl that is sitting on top of an ice ring or in a larger bowl of ice to keep it cold but not diluted. Place some lovely wintry greens around the base of the bowl and you'll have a wonderful cocktail for a buffet that's delightfully reminiscent of a really old fashioned holiday!

Now for fun watch this great video. He makes his with Brandy which is equally as good although I do prefer bourbon myself. He also uses simple syrup while I definitely prefer the confectioners sugar because I think that it makes it thicker. His is a great recipe for one drink at a time. Enjoy!

The Art of Fine Cookery ~ Milady's Lovely, Easy & Luscious Eggnog.....

“The house was bright that night, with candles lit in the windows, and bunches of holly and ivy fixed to the staircase and the doorposts. There were not so many pipers in the Highlands as there had been before Culloden, but one had been found, and a fiddler as well, and music floated up the stairwell, mixed with the heady scent of rum punch, plum cake, almond squirts, and Savoy biscuits.
Jamie had come down late and hesitant. Many people here he had not seen in nearly ten years, and he was not eager to see them now, feeling changed and distant as he did. But Jenny had made him a new shirt, brushed and mended his coat, and combed his hair smooth and plaited it for him before going downstairs to see to the cooking. He had no excuse to linger, and at last had come down, into the noise and swirl of the gathering.
”

Excerpt From: Diana Gabaldon. “Voyager.”  

I love eggnog and it always takes me back to this scene in Voyager where Jamie was telling Claire about the first Hogmanay after he returned to Lallybroch.  I only wish that it had been Claire to share the rum punch with him instead of Loaghaire.....

 This recipe is no less magical and absolutely decadent! It's so easy to make and it's even better when served in a punchbowl surrounded by spicy yuletide greenery! You can make the recipe from scratch if you desire and if I have the time sometimes I will using whole organic eggs, milk, sugar and cream, but frankly when the good organic eggnogs are so plentiful why bother (and you have the added bonus of not having to worry about raw eggs)! Also, if you have anyone in your family who is allergic to milk or eggs, don't forget about Silk's soy eggnog or SoyNog as I believe it's called! 

Actually all of the milk substitutes (actually I think that it is a real disservice to call them that, as they are delicious in their own rights!) are creating wonderful "eggnogs" that you can use as the base for this recipe. They're absolutely delicious  and you will be able to serve a delicious and festive holiday beverage that leaves no one feeling left out! 

The good news for vegans this year is that you don't even have to omit the whipped cream because theres a fabulous whipped rice cream available in a can and ready to use like Redi Whip. Made by Soyana, you should be able to find it easily at your local Whole Foods.

At any rate every year, people beg me for this recipe and I'm always so embarrassed to tell them just how easy it is...with this one it's all in the presentation (and the rum!) At last years Winter Solstice party I think that we went through about 3 punch bowls of it and lots of the RSVP's for this years party start with "Ill see you around the eggnog bowl!" 

All you will need is :

3 quarts of organic eggnog ( Please splurge on the organic, you won't be sorry!)

About 2 cups of really good rum! I personally love the Captain Morgan's special reserve spiced rum for this recipe. It's already infused with spices and vanilla, it's practically perfume! ( And I have been known to use it as such!)

About 6 cups of dried raisins that you've soaked for about 6 hours in a lovely single malt scotch ,reserving the scotch for the eggnog as well! 

Lots of whipped cream that has been infused with vanilla extract, brown sugar and some rum flavoring. For this I like to beat my whipped cream by hand in a copper bowl with a whisk. It takes a little longer but the cream is a wonderful silken consistency. Don't worry if you don't have a copper bowl and just do it the traditional way. It will be just as yummy!

Then add a liberal sprinkling of:

Nutmeg for joy and good luck, Cinnamon for love and prosperity and Allspice for continuous good health throughout the year!

The recipe itself is quite easy, simply put the eggnog into a punch bowl and whisk in the rum and brandy. Ladle the whipped cream onto the eggnog so that it looks like fluffy clouds of cream, sprinkle with the spices and serve. Put some of the raisins in each serving. 

You will need to add more whipped cream on top as the evening unfolds because the cream continuously  gets folded into the eggnog, making it AMAZING! Serve in a lovely punch glass or a pretty tea cup with a kiss and a wish for a marvelous New Year! 

For more of my food musings please go to Stirring the Senses on Amazon.com

For lots more Outlander fun please visit me at Milady's Pantry and My Outlander Love Affair on Facebook!

The Art of Fine Cookery : Craving some Comfort and a wee bit of Atholl Brose

       

It's freezing here in Northeast Ohio and it's time for a good old fashioned hot alcoholic drink...you know, something to warm your heart as well as your hands! I have plenty of toddies and hot buttered rum recipes in my arsenal but I really wanted something different; I just wasn't sure what!

Then I remembered the bottle of Apple Pie Moonshine that I had sitting in my cabinet and just as quickly I ran downstairs and took the lid off of the mason jar with the wicked looking brown liquid in it. 

Warning- This is not your uncles Moonshine...This stuff is unbelievable and it smells and tastes just like a fresh cinnamon spiked apple pie, but with a mule sized kick. For some reason (or maybe I'm just highly suggestible!) it made me crave a mug of Atholl Brose, that wonderful Scottish drink of oatmeal brose , honey , whisky and cream so I grabbed my copper kettle and filled it with 3/4 of a gallon of apple cider, 3 tablespoons of pumpkin pie spice and 1 stick of butter. I let that simmer for a bit, whisking frequently and next added about 1 1/2 cups of blackstrap molasses and a sachet of one cup of oatmeal tied in the foot of a brand new pair of stockings that I'd cut the foot off of. (I keep plenty of cheap pairs around for that purpose) 

After that simmered for about 45 minutes there was still plenty of liquid but it was syrupy, wonderful and the molasses and oatmeal gave it a very earthy flavor. I squeezed the bag of oatmeal several times into the pot and then I added one jar of the moonshine, 1 cup of Buttershot schnapps, 1 cup of Drambuie, 3/4 of a cup of vanilla brandy and two teaspoons of vanilla extract. I brought it all to steaming, filled a camping thermos with boiling water , dumped it out and then added the piping hot Brew. It was delicious ~ I'm absolutely thrilled!  I've been sipping it all day with steaming Scottish breakfast tea, a shot of Laphroaig and some brown sugar whipped cream! It keeps well and I have enough for an army so perhaps a gathering of the clans is in order or at least a comfy chair, a soft blanket and your dog eared copy of Outlander!