A four-ounce serving of regular egg nog has 190 to 230 calories without the alcohol added. Photography copyright Mark Hayes.
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Product Reviews / Diet Nibbles / Diet BeveragesDiet Egg NogVariations on Our Most Caloric Beverage
So, you might want to taste just a spoonful (or none at all) of the real thing, and celebrate with one of the four diet versions below. Diet egg nog is not the same thing, of course; but it’s a the first step toward a new years’ resolution to eat a healthier diet! For the history of egg nog and how it got its name, click here.
Diet Egg Nog #1: Simplest Individual Serving
Pour the ingredients into a blender with an ice cube. If you don’t have a blender, use a glass and use a milk frother to whip up a foam; a Blender Bottle, or any bottle with a tight cap. Pour into glass (with ice if desired) and dust with extra nutmeg. You can keep re-cycled 16-ounce water bottles filled with the nog during the holidays or anytime—it’s a tasty way to get your milk requirement with no added calories. The calories will be 90 or 110 per eight-ounce glass, depending on the milk you use. The spices and sweetener are calorie-free.
Diet Egg Nog #2: With Da Vinci Sugar-Free Egg Nog Syrup
You can add it to milk, or to any diet vanilla shake recipe...and of course, to coffee, cappuccino, and diet hot chocolate to create your own holiday specialties. Da Vinci Sugar-Free Egg Nog Syrup
Diet Egg Nog #3: Party-Size With Egg Beaters
Heat the milk, Egg Beaters® and sweetener in the microwave on high (or in a saucepan on the stove) until thickened, stirring every minute or so. Remove from microwave or stovetop and stir in the remaining ingredients. Cover the mixture tightly with plastic wrap and chill. Dust with additional nutmeg. Makes six eight-ounce servings of 100 to 120 calories, depending on the milk used.
Diet Egg Nog #4: South Beach Diet AdaptationThis version comes from a friend who’s on the South Beach Diet. We haven’t had it, but she says it’s terrific.
In a medium bowl combine 2 cups of milk and the pudding mix; stir well until thickened. Add the remaining 2 cups of milk and the egg substitute; mix well. Stir in the rum extract, vanilla extract, salt and nutmeg until well-blended. Refrigerate overnight. Makes four eight-ounce servings, 121-141 calories, depending on milk used.
The History of Egg NogEgg nog is a descendant of milk-and-wine punches that had long been part of European celebrations when colonists arrived in the Americas. Rum, a New World distillation, enabled a spirited substitution for the wine. It became a popular wintertime drink throughout Colonial America. Then as now, people loved the rich, spicy, and alcoholic brew. President George Washington was quite a fan of egg nog. His own recipe, which included rye whiskey, rum and sherry, was reputed to be so stiff a drink that only the most courageous could down it. Brandy joined rum in the basic recipe much later—as part of a book promotion! In the 1820’s Pierce Egan, wrote a book called “Life of London: or Days and Nights of Jerry Hawthorne and His Elegant Friend Corinthina Tom.” Just as today’s mixologists and publicists know how to generate buzz with a new cocktail, Egan created a variation of egg nog he called the “Tom and Jerry.” The half ounce of brandy he added to the basic recipe furthered egg nog’s popularity—and fortunately, the original name prevailed. The research site InDepthInfo.com notes that “Egg nog, in the 1800s was nearly always made in large quantities and nearly always used as a social drink. It was commonly served at holiday parties and it was noted by an English visitor in 1866, [that] ‘Christmas is not properly observed unless you brew egg nogg for all comers; everybody calls on everybody else; and each call is celebrated by a solemn egg-nogging...It is made cold and is drunk cold and is to be commended.’” Baltimore initiated a tradition where young men made the rounds of their friends on New Year’s Day, enjoying a bracing cup of egg nog at each. The more homes one visited, the more “braced” one became. It was considered a feat to actually finish one’s rounds. How times change! Aside from today’s attitudes toward moderation, would anyone give up football to continue the tradition?
How Egg Nog Got Its NameAs with most things in the murky past, there are different stories on the origins of egg nog. The egg part is easy: there are eggs in the recipe (along with sugar, rum, milk, whiskey/bourbon/rum/brandy, heavy cream, vanilla and ground nutmeg). The two contenders for the nog:
Regardless, the unusual charm of the name only enhances the rich charm of the beverage. Now if we only could do something about those calories! *After Old Grog, the nickname of Edward Vernon (1684-1757), a British admiral who ordered that diluted rum be served to his sailors. The nickname is derived from grogram, after his habit of wearing a grogram cloak—a coarse fabric made of silk, mohair, wool, or a blend of them. Isn’t etymology fascinating?
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Da Vinci makes many flavored syrups, including a sugar-free line, that are used to make mochaccinos and other beverages. Understanding the seasonal egg nog conflict for dieters and diabetics, they make a sugar-free, calorie-free egg-nog syrup sweetened with Splenda®.