Serves 12
I love those cartoned vegan eggnogs but let’s face it, they’re not much more than sweet, flavored soy milk. Real eggnog should be thick, frothy and creamy. Not cloyingly sweet, but just sweet enough to heighten the seductive aromas of nutmeg and cinnamon. Of course a healthy shot of rum is in order, too.
When a super-glamorous actress contacted me for a vegan eggnog recipe that wouldn’t make her feel like she ate an entire cake, I immediately thought of two ingredients: coconut milk and avocado. Yes, they’re heavy ingredients but in a good way! When blended with almond milk and other ingredients they are just rich enough to give plenty of body and creaminess. And if you’re concerned about your nog tasting like avocado, trust me, it won’t! It will just take like blissful holiday dreaminess. Or maybe that’s the rum talking.
Just a few pointers to make sure your nog comes out as perfect as possible. Make sure that the avocado is perfectly ripe but not overly ripe. And keep all your ingredients COLD. Don’t skip that part of the directions, if the ingredients are warm the texture and flavor will be off, even if you chill it afterward. Also, avocado doesn’t keep that well, so definitely make this as close to serving time as possible. For the best, freshest flavor, serve immediately. But you can also keep it tightly sealed and refrigerated for up to 4 hours.
And for those teatotalers, you can definitely enjoy this nog in straight-edge form! Just add extra milk in place of the rum. You can also use light coconut milk if you like, it will just be less rich (obviously.) But really, this isn’t intended to be a low-fat drink, it’s definitely an indulgence, so keep in mind that a little goes a long way.
1 ripe avocado
1 13 oz can coconut milk
3 cups almond milk
1/2 cup agave nectar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg (freshly grated, if possible)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Tiny pinch cloves (less than 1/8th teaspoon)
Rum to taste (start with 1/3 cup and see from there)
Cinnamon sticks for garnish if you have them (I didn’t for this pic)
Pour coconut milk into a container. Place coconut milk and avocado in the freezer for about 45 minutes. They shouldn’t be frozen but they should be really, really cold (a little iciness on the coconut milk is ok.)
Slice avocado in half, remove the pit, peel it and place in a blender. Add all of the other ingredients as well. Blend until smooth. That’s it! Sprinkle with a little extra nutmeg and garnish with a cinnamon stick if you like.
What a fantastic version of eggnog! I just posted a recipe for eggnog rice pudding, and wish I had used this ‘nog instead of the organic low-fat (but over sweetened) cartoned version. Great recipe 🙂
This looks so awesome. I love the glass too!
Perfecto. Love how it’s freed from the shackles of silken tofu! And the adorable glass is making me go squeee.
holy crap, isa! yes.
but didn’t you get the memo that I’m allergic to almonds now?
regardless, I’ll be making this for my holiday party.
that sounds fantastic! & what a cute glass!
Do you have a suggestion for a good possible substitute for almond milk? I’m allergic. Thanks! It sounds delicious otherwise…
Thanks, all! I love the glass, too. There are three of varying sizes, sent to me from the boys at Back To Eden Bakery.
As for the almond milk – replace it with your fave non-dairy milk. Rice, soy, hemp, oat…whatever you like!
– Isa
OH MY LORD. Thank you so much for this recipe: I have been worrying for a full month about facing my first holiday season sans nog. It is my absolute number one seasonal delight this time of year (bar fruitcake, but fruitcake is FAMILY so that’s different) and now I can’t wait to start glugging it down!
And what actress? Spill!
I’m sure that this recipe would be delicious with rice milk, too, for all of the nut allergic vegans out there 🙂 Will be trying this recipe this weekend… I will make a batch with rice milk too and see how it turns out.
Oooooh, this sounds amazing and I don’t even LIKE eggnog! Yum! C
This sounds really delightful, and that is the CUTEST CUP EVER.
You and this vegan have the same glasses! Also, I thought about buying them at one time.
is amazake the same as almond milk?
Wow! I’ve never had actual egg nog, so I didn’t really realize that Silk nog wasn’t much like the real thing….but this sounds amazing. And so full of good fat. I love how good fat gives you an fun excuse to eat fat. 🙂
I have those glasses! You have fine taste, my dear.
I’ve never had egg nog before, and hearing about it has always kind of grossed me out. But this doesn’t sound too bad at all- far from it, actually!
Aww, I was so excited, but my husband is allergic to coconut AND almonds!
Oh, great! Was pondering how to best increase the “body” of the vegan holiday drinks. I actually started my blog with one, a pumpkin soy milk-whiskey drink that I had then added some Trader Joe’s organic soy creamer to: http://veganfazool.blogspot.com in case anyone is interested. That worked nicely, but this one will be nice and thick! Got to get some avocados and give it a try this weekend! Thanks, Isa!
That’s a great recipe! When I feel super generous, I will make it for my husband. I’ll substitute the agave syrup though with something better (less fructose-y); I certainly will try to add less of whatever sweetener I decide on. But all in all this sounds wonderful and easy enough! Thank you!
That’s a great recipe! When I feel super generous, I will make it for my husband. I’ll substitute the agave syrup though with something better (less fructose-y); I certainly will try to add less of whatever sweetener I decide on. But all in all this sounds wonderful and easy enough! Thank you!
Wow. I will definitely be making this soon.
Ok, maybe this is weird but I like my nog warm sometimes. Can this recipe be heated after it’s all done? Or will that ruin it?
(I think maybe people drink egg nog cold because of the eggs but with soy versions there are no eggs, soo…I’m not THAT weird right?)
Ooo yes! I was just enjoying a free sample of warmed Rice Nog today at Whole Foods and I loved it. My husband remarked that it wasn’t thick enough, and I remarked that it needed rum! Perfect timing with the recipe.
Wow.. that sounds delicious.
And that’s the cutest little glass of eggnog I have ever seen.
This looks delicious!…
but am I the only one who is perplexed that the final result isn’t green from the avocado? I have never made anything that included an avocado and didn’t turn out green, except that avocado chocolate pudding recipe that ran through the blogosphere not too long ago.
This IS amazing…thanks Isa! It still tastes good the next day too!
Easy and delicious sounding. I’ve always loved eggnog but haven’t had it since I became vegan.
Amber, I am perplexed by it. But I figure it’s a miracle and we shan’t question it.
Would this work in a food processor for non-blender owners?
I just finished making this now and wow! so yummy. I had to do a test run for me before making it for friends. next time i’ll add less agave though.
I used a food processor (a mini prep one) and it worked perfectly fine. I also used light coconut milk as i didn’t want it to be too heavy. Thanks so much for this, it’s my new go to nog recipe.
I’ve never been a fan of silk nog, but was always too lazy to try to come up with a better one–now you’ve gone and made a better one FOR me! My sloth paid off! Thanks!
I’ve recently become vegan for health reasons and have been majorly jonesing for eggnog. This looks great!! Thanks so much!
Wonderful nog…..much better than the Silk stuff. And way better than any other recipe I have tried. Soooo rich and creamy. And it wasn’t green…even though if it was green it really would not matter, because it is just that good. The hardest part was having to wait two days while avocado ripened. Oh yea and I went “straight-edge on this one”. Thanks for this.
Am i the only one who just can’t stop wondering who the actress who wanted it was?
I agree with jildez. Who was this actress?
Anyways thanks for the recipe! I can not wait to try it.
My only eggnog experience has been Slik, and I usually mix it with regular Silk to make it less sweet. I’ve been trying to get more healthy fat in my life, so I’ll make this for sure! Thanks for the amazing recipe, I can’t wait to try it!
I made this last night for a PPK meetup and it was really good! Mine turned the palest of pale greens from the avocado but no one cared, and it tasted great!
We have a tradition at my office where the owner brings his famous eggnog. Now I can show up with a vegan version and join the cheer. so nice:)
I would never have thought of a vegan eggnog… maybe because I am not American. and I cannot believe that you have carton eggnog, so many products just do not exist here!
I love your glass so much, I want one!!!!
ciao
Alessandra
This is bloody excellent – and the first recipe I’ve seen for an almond milk version and with ingredients I already have in my kitchen. I love the nog, but it doesn’t love me. Know I’m proud to say our affection is mutual.
Excellent!
I did it with low fat coconut milk and it was perfect!
Excellent! This is exactly what we’ve been looking for 🙂
How much does this make? Wondering if I should double or triple it for a 5 person party or if I’ll be swimming in nog.
The first two times I made this, I was soo disappointed! I knew it had to be something I was doing wrong as all of your recipes have been amazing! Yeah, when I matched up what I wrote down with the recipe, I forgot to write down the three cups of alt milk. Needless to say, that made a huge difference. The only problem.. now I’m HOOKED on this ‘nog!!
Heather, it makes a full blender’s worth of ‘nog. I’d say there’s enough for five.
As a [gasp] honey-eatin’ vegan who is a bit hesitant to shell out the extra dollars for the admittedly delicious agave nectar, I was wondering if anyone has had any success with alternatives to the 1/2 cup of agave nectar. Be it honey, be it nectar, a 1/2 cup seems like a lot, and a bit demanding of one’s supply of such gooey goodness. I dread to think of what the ending color would look like, but do you think adding 1/4 cup of molasses in lieu of half of the nectar would have pleasing results? Texturally, aesthetically, and tastily?