Are you familiar with Tom & Jerrys, folks? The warming holiday co*cktail made with eggs, sugar, two types of dairy, spices, and either brandy or rum (or creme de cocoa, if you are me)?
This ain’t like anything I grew up with in the old country, but it can sure be nice on a cold December night in Wisconsin, with or without alcohol.
Tom & Jerrys are made from a creamy batter that looks like this:
What you do is stir a couple of tablespoons into a mug-full of hot milk and add the desired amount of alcohol (it is also common to sprinkle some nutmeg on top). Some people have been known to use water, but I don’t find that satisfactory, because, let’s face it, a good doze of animal fat on a winter evening is the most important part of it all. You can also omit the alcohol, making it a fine drink for kids and pregnant ladies, which is how I’ve been having it this year.
Warning: The following recipe contains raw eggs. It’s your call whether you trust your egg source or not.
So here goes:
You start with eggs – these beautiful homegrown eggs are from my in-laws’ farm.
Talk about green eggs and ham.
These green ones came from a hatchery batch sold as “rainbow layers,” if you wanna look them up for your own homestead, urban or otherwise. The exact breed responsible for the green eggs may have been Araucana, but I am not 100% sure.
First, separate three eggs, dumping the whites into a bowl of a stand mixer and the yolks into a separate container to be used in the next step. See how orange the yolks are? That’s homegrown for ya. Not to tease you or anything.
Be sure not to get any yolk into the whites because any amount of fat (and yolks are fat) will prevent the whites from forming a foam. You also have to make sure that your bowl is not a bit greasy.
Just look at these – I always marvel at the color – and the flavor.
Next, beat the whites until soft peaks form, sprinkle in a little salt, and beat until stiff.
This stiff.
Now transfer the whites somewhere else and throw a stick of soft butter into the mixer bowl instead (do not wash the bowl). Whip the butter on high until light and fluffy.
Now add in the yolks…
3 1/2 C of powdered sugar,
A dash of vanilla,
And begin whipping everything together. At first the things will be looking sorta grainy (above)…
But will get creamy after a while. When you get to the above stage, you can beat in your spices (nutmeg, cloves, etc) if you feel so inclined.
Once the mixture is creamy, add in the whites, all at once…
And continue beating on high speed until you end up with a smooth, creamy batter.
Keep the batter in the fridge or, better yet, freezer – in which case it will still be good a year or two later. Ask me how I know.
Makes approximately 3 cups of batter.
- 3 eggs, separated
- a pinch of salt
- 1 stick soft butter
- 3 1/2 C powdered sugar
- a good dash of vanilla
- nutmeg, mace and/or ground cloves (optional)
To serve:
- piping-hot milk
- nutmeg (optional)
- brandy, rum, or creme de cocoa
Beat whites in a clean bowl of a stand mixer until soft peaks form. Sprinkle in the salt and whip on high until stiff. Transfer the whites into a separate bowl.
Place the soft butter into the mixer bowl (do not wash the bowl) and whip until light and fluffy. Add the yolks, powdered sugar, and vanilla, and continue beating until you end up with a thick, smooth batter. Beat in the spices if desired.
Add the whites to the bowl and beat on high until the batter is smooth. Transfer into a jar or a tupperware container, cover tightly, and keep in either fridge or freezer, depending on how fast you think you will get through it. If kept in the freezer, the batter will be good for a couple of years.
To serve, place 2 T of batter into a mug and add hot milk and a splash of booze of your choice (note that frozen batter does not need to be thawed before using). If desired, sprinkle a little nutmeg on top – freshly ground is especially nice if you are feeling fancy.
