Sweet, spicy & eggciting

Christmas, the season to be jolly has rolled around, and so have warm eggnog and chunky marzipan

- Chinmay Raval

My Christmas story—be it romantic or mystery—is rarely complete without someone or the other downing a glass of eggnog. And on the table, or in that plate of sweets that your Catholic neighbour brings around, will probably be a pretty collection of marzipan in varied shapes.

The origins of eggnog are unclear, as often happens with older food traditions which have not been documented or recorded. Eggnog is believed to have originated as a medieval drink called "posset", made with hot milk, ale or wine, and spices, which was had as a warming drink during winter. Some monks were known to add figs and eggs to this. European colonisers took this drink to the Americas with them, and over time it evolved to incorporate local ingredients such as rum and sugar, which were abundant in the New World.

The "nog" in the word is thought to refer to either "noggin" which was the English name for the cup that ale was drunk in, or to the word "nugg", the Scottish word for warmed ale.