It’s holiday confession time: I don’t like egg nog. While I am on board with almost every old school Christmas tradition, I can’t get down with the nog. When Silk reached out to me and asked me to try out their new almond nog, I realized this was my chance to participate in the season of nog in a more palatable way. The Silk nog is awfully good on its own, but I decided to next level my drink with real vanilla beans and almond liqueur.
Silk Almond Nog is dairy- and egg-free and consequently has much fewer calories than traditional egg nog. That means you can choose to use those extra calories to add in a bit of “holiday spirit” without throwing your diet way out of whack. Check out your grocery store’s refrigerated section for Silk’s Almond Nog, Soy Nog, and Pumpkin Spice Nog.
The other special ingredient in this recipe is the addition of real, from the bean vanilla. Vanilla beans aren’t especially cheap, but a little goes a long way. I found real Madagascar vanilla beans in my grocery store’s spice aisle.
To use the vanilla beans, you need to slice the bean down the center, lengthwise. I am not sure why I was expecting the bean to be more like a hard pod; it actually had a pliable, raisin-like texture. Next, take the edge of your knife blade and run it down the interior of the bean, scraping off the tiny black bits inside. This is where the magic lives.
After you are sure you have harvested all of the vanilla goodness from the inside of your bean, you need to infuse that flavor into the Silk nog. It will take about 10 minutes to bring the mixture to a rolling boil and then another 5 minutes of gentle simmering.
Give the vanilla almond nog a good stir to incorporate all the vanilla, and pour it into coffee mug. If you wish, this is where you can spike the nog with a bit of amaretto liqueur. Awww yeah.
I am so happy I can embrace the classic tradition of drinking a hot mug of nog and join the ranks of Christmas purists worldwide. Make sure to visit the Silk holiday website for recipes, a free digital holiday recipe book, a coupon, and more!
- 1 qt Silk Almond Nog
- 1 vanilla bean
- amaretto
- Pour quart of nog into a medium saucepan.
- Slice open vanilla bean lengthwise. Use knife to scrape caviar from inside the bean. Add vanilla caviar to the nog.
- Heat over medium heat until it reaches a rolling boil. Reduce heat and simmer for five minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add one ounce of amaretto for each five ounces of vanilla nog.
- Serve hot.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Silk . The opinions and text are all mine.
