A Festive (Dairy-Free!) EggNog Recipe

As you finish wrapping gifts and preparing for guests, take time for yourself and enjoy perhaps a cup of eggnog! Rebekah of A & B Creative with photography by Mariel Hannah shares with us her dairy-free version that looks too delicious to pass up!

I did a little research on how to make a dairy-free eggnog that would also allow me to indulge where I really wanted to...like cookies. For me, eggnog has always been a little too sweet for my taste, so it was nice to try to create one that could still be fun to imbibe in, but that would be, dare I say, a little healthier. With ingredients like freshly ground nutmeg, dates, pecans and a dash of maple syrup (and a little bourbon if you're so inclined) you get a new take on the holiday classic. Once you've made your nog and you add some snowflake cookies with a sprinkling of powdered sugar and a cinnamon stick garnish and you've got the holidays in a glass!

I also wanted to show a few of my favorite ways to decorate a small space (or any space, really!) for the holidays. Gathering foraged items from my yard I trimmed our little tree (that I plan to plant in our front yard later in the New Year) with berries, hung a swatch of pine with twine as our wreath, and a garland of gold-dipped jute hangs across our beams. 

Recipe:

In a blender, blend:

1 c. Pecans (soaking them ahead of time will cut down on blending time and help your drink to be nice and smooth)
4 cups hot water (you can decrease the water that you're soaking your pecans in, as well as if you plan to add alcohol which will naturally make your nog less thick)
1 c. medjool dates

Fresh vanilla, ground cinnamon and nutmeg can be added by the teaspoon to arrive at your favorite level of spice! If you want a very low sugar option you can do the above, if you don't mind adding a little more sweetness a dash of fresh maple syrup is delicious.

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