Boozy Eggnog. Photo Credit: Kelly Carambula, Eat Make Read

Admit it. We've all been there. You want to do something different than champagne and you can't bear to look at another pomegranate cocktail. Where to turn? What to do? Well my family's a big drinking family around the holidays and between the five of us, lots of tipple research occurs. I wanted to share with you today a few recipes that are easy to throw together in a pinch. Perfect for unexpected company or those looming late night gift-wrapping marathons.

1) The Old Pal: How can you not love a drink that's named The Old Pal? And even better: it's a strong whiskey, Campari, Vermouth blend reminiscent of a Manhattan that takes less than 5 minutes to shake up. CHOW introduced us to it recently, and we've been enjoying them ever since. For a long night with the relatives, this is the one to turn to. Guaranteed to loosen everyone up.

2) Bourbon Gingersnap: Real Simple's Bourbon Gingersnap is the perfect warm-me-up cocktail for a night in at home. And there's something seemingly healthy about its blend of fresh juices, grated ginger, bourbon and honey that helps assuage the guilt of overimbibing.

3) Boozy Eggnog: Kelly Carambula's blog, Eat Make Read, is always a winning resource for fresh, seasonal cocktails (she posts a new one each Friday) and this past week she rocked the spiked eggnog. It's not quite homemade--it's really store-bought eggnog with a glug of whiskey and a few spices, but it's a busy time of year and this does the trick for me.

4) The Poinsettia: The Kitchn posted a simple holiday recipe for a champagne-based cocktail made with a little cranberry juice and Cointreau. It takes all of ten seconds to throw together, is pretty and festive, and has holiday written all over it.

5) Tea-Spiked Cocktails: Impress the neighbors this year with something a little new from Ready Made Magazine: a variety of great drinks made with tea. The La Valencia, made with lemon, chamomile-infused rye whiskey, and sherry is my personal favorite.

6) Blood Orange Punch: O.k., o.k., I turn to Martha not just for baking advice. She has mean cocktail ideas, too. And this year was no exception. We generally do some version of heavily-spiked punch at Thanksgiving because it works well for larger crowds and it's easy to manage. The Blood Orange punch appealed to the young and old this year: not too sweet and not too strong. When a punch is in order, this is a safe and delicious bet.

7) Vita Coca Crantini: Coconut Juice is all the rage these days and recently In Style Magazine decided to add a little vodka, frozen cranberries, and cranberry juice to the refreshing tropical juice and call it a day. The result is a martini that's almost creamy, bright, and crisp. I'd never thought about using coconut water as a mixer before stumbling upon this recipe, and now I'm hooked.

8) Hot Peppermint Patty: When you've had enough of the eggnog and fruity cocktails, sometimes a spiked hot chocolate is in order. And Bon Appetit's version is to die for: With whole milk, bittersweet chocolate and crème de cacao, it's the perfect indulgent drink for a rainy winter night. I love making these after dinner when friends are just sitting around chatting. We do them with a little whiskey or kahlua (or both).

9) Hot Toddy: You can't talk about spiked holiday cocktails without mentioning the Hot Toddy. That just wouldn't be right. And for those of you who have lived in states with real, bitter winters -- you know the magic of a Hot Toddy come February. But even here in the Bay Area, nothing sounds better to me on occasion, and Jamie Oliver's recipe is my favorite due to his addition of malt powder and real vanilla pods. This one takes a little more time, but it's absolutely worth it in the end. A keeper in my holiday cocktail arsenal.

10) Hot Mulled Spiked Cider: Elise's recipe for hot apple cider over at Simply Recipes is really quite perfect. She uses a blend of allspice berries, cloves, and cardamom pods. While I realize these aren't necessarily ingredients you have laying around the kitchen at all times, with a little pre-planning this cider is a special treat guests won't forget. Elise mentions adding rum, bourbon, or brandy to spike it. I also think Tuaca would be nice.

What did we miss? What are you favorite holiday cocktails that you enjoy and rely on year after year?

It's getting to be that special time of year again. I will leave the reasons behind its specialness open to interpretation. Holiday party invitations start showing up in one's mailbox the moment the turkey baster has been dried and tucked away in a drawer. Concurrently, this is the time of year when egg nog starts to muscle its way into your local supermarket's dairy case.

Egg Nog. It's a heart-stopping, cholesterol-laden, alcohol-spiked, phlegm-producing cup of Holiday goodness. And I'm a huge fan. I always have been.

As a child, the appeal was obvious; what eight year-old is going to say no to a sweet, creamy dairy product? I imagined I was drinking melted nutmeg ice cream. Given the ingredients, I didn't know how close to the mark I was. I would drink several glasses at holiday gatherings. If I accidentally got into the rum-spiked nog for adults (which was understandable since the crystal punch bowl full of alcoholic nog looked exactly like the cardboard carton that contained the booze-free liquid), so much the better. Open a container, pour out its contents, mix in a little rum, and get the party started. Egg nog punch is that simple. Or was, until I had my first taste of the real stuff.

It wasn't until I was well into adulthood that my family would pay a call on my stepmother's friend Charlene and her family, who had a sort of open house party every Christmas Eve. The house was always dressed to the teeth in holiday drag, complete with a sort of Christmas-on- Main-Street, U.S.A. recreation in miniature spread out over the tables in the living room and onto the grand piano. I'd peek into the tiny cellophane windows looking for any signs of domestic unhappiness or violence, but was invariably disappointed in my search. Booze-spiked cocktail wieners, prawns, and every kind of dip imaginable were there for the taking, and our hosts were always warm and in a festive mood, which is just the thing my family needs during the holidays. For me, the two main attractions of the party were the Presentation of the Egg Nog, and the Wheeling-in of Grandpa. This quiet old gentleman was missing one of his legs and an eye. At least, I assume he was missing an eye since he wore an eye patch. This in itself is nothing unusual, since it it very likely that he suffered from diabetes, though I never asked. What I always found interesting was the fact that he was always parked against the wall near the center of the main room, slightly to the right of a parrot cage, which hung near (but wisely not over) the dessert table. He was, to me, a sort of pirate centerpiece to the party.

The Presentation of the Egg Nog was not a heralded event, but one I always watched with interest. Charlene and her husband Bill would be in the kitchen fussing over the bowl, stirring in something here, adding a little nutmeg there. They'd do a little tasting, adjust favoring, do a little more tasting, add more booze, then Charlene would pick up the enormous bowl and walk it to the buffet table very carefully, the whitecaps of stiffened egg white gently rising and falling against the sides. When her mission had been successfully accomplished, people would grab their cups and huddle around the bowl, waiting their turn to dip in. It was a revelation, in terms of my nog-drinking experience. It was fresh and frothy. I finally understood where the egg part of egg nog came in-- the subtle yellow coloring from yolks beaten without mercy, the foam of egg whites folded in for body. It ruined my enjoyment of store-bought nog forever.

I won't assume that all three of you reading this have ever tried homemade egg nog. If you haven't, and you don't have problems consuming dairy, cholesterol or alcohol, I say go ahead and try it. It's really, really good. And you only get it once a year, so drink up.

Egg Nog

The rumor behind the word "nog" is that it derived from the English word "noggin"; a small, carved, wooden mug used to serve drinks in various taverns. The full name of this beverage might have been "egg and grog in a noggin", which does not sound especially appetizing. There also seems to be some disagreement as to whether the beverage is spelled as one word or two. I like two, it sounds more important that way.

Ingredients:

4 egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
1 pint whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup rum, bourbon, or whatever poison you prefer
4 egg whites

Procedure:

1. Beat egg yolks until pale yellow in color. Gradually add 1/3 cup of sugar until it is totally dissolved.

2. In a medium saucepan, over high heat, combine milk, cream, and nutmeg and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and temper the hot milk mixture into the eggs and sugar. Return everything to the pot and cook until mixture reaches 160 degrees F. Remove from heat, stir in alcohol and extract, pour into a medium-sized mixing bowl and chill in your refrigerator.

3. In a medium bowl, beat egg whites to soft peaks. Gradually add one tablespoon of sugar as you beat until stiff peaks form. Whisk egg whites into chilled mixture.

4. Put your now fresh and somewhat safe beverage in the noggin or vessel of your choice and drink up.