Food Detective: The Old Family Eggnog
I’ve been trying for some time to find the origins of our family eggnog recipe. My grandmother, who started the tradition within our family, and my mother, who took it over for her, are both gone, and I never thought to ask either of them while I had them.
If I had a dime for all the questions I have to ask the people who are gone, I’d be pretty rich.
Anyway, after my grandmother died 15 years ago, I came into possession of her recipe box. It occurred to me to look in there to see if I could find any clues as to the recipe’s provenance. Well, I found the recipe all right, and it was written in the same hand that my aunts told me was a cousin of ours who was known for their cooking. It was labeled “Mother’s Eggnog.”
So I looked up his mother. She was my great-great-great aunt, born in 1868, and she was the granddaughter of the last messenger from the Alamo.
This is some serious Old Family Eggnog, y’all.