Coquito ~ Puerto Rican Eggnog

Yet another holiday treat, finally being posted in April! 

Many years ago we attended a Christmas party where the most popular drink being poured was coquito.  The coquito was smooth, creamy, delicious and honestly you’d swear it didn’t have much, if any, alcohol…until you tried to stand up and walk and then it hit you!   Since that party, this delicious drink has replaced traditional eggnog in our home, making an appearance most holiday seasons.  Coquito is simple to make, but be sure to prepare it at least 24 hours ahead so that the flavors have time to meld perfectly together.  If you’d like to make an alcohol-free version just replace the rum with coconut water.

Coquito ~ Puerto Rican Eggnog

• 1 15-oz. can cream of coconut 
• 1 13.5-oz. can coconut milk 
• 1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 12-oz. can evaporated milk
• 8-16 oz. rum, amount based on preference, can use white, gold, dark or spiced rum (or 8 oz. coconut water for an alcohol free version)
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
• pinch of ground allspice
• 1 tsp. vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
• roasted cinnamon for garnish

Add all the ingredients except the roasted cinnamon, to the jar of a blender and process until smooth and blended.  Pour the contents into bottles and refrigerate for at least a few hours, preferably over night, allowing the flavors to blend.  Shake bottles well before serving.  Serve the coquito cold, as small portions, dusted with some roasted cinnamon. 

Enjoy!

Eggnog Popovers with Cranberry Butter

This is now my third month participating in the Improv Cooking Challenge which is hosted by Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker.  Each month participating bloggers are given two ingredients and asked to make any recipe of their choosing which contains those two ingredients.  For the inaugural challenge in October, participants made recipes using caramel and apple and the Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies that I made were over the top wonderful.  November brought the seasonal flavor of pumpkin along with cream cheese and I made a beautiful and delicious Praline Pumpkin Cheesecake.  This month’s ingredients are so appropriate for this time of year, eggnog and cranberries.  I debated and debated with myself on what I wanted to make.  First it was a cake, then cookies, maybe ice cream with a topping or even fudge but in the end I decided to make Eggnog Popovers with Cranberry Butter.  One cold day I got a craving for popovers and thought that I’d see if I could substitute eggnog for the milk in my tried-and-true popover recipe and much to my delight it worked out wonderfully.  To incorporate the cranberries I decided to make a slightly sweet cranberry butter which when slathered on a hot popover was pure delight.  This recipe would be perfect for a holiday breakfast or brunch as it really brings out the flavors of the season.

Eggnog Popovers with Cranberry Butter

1 cup eggnog
2 large eggs
1 TBS. vegetable oil
1 TBS. sugar
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup all-purpose flour

Spray a six cup muffin tin with cooking spray and place it into a cold oven. Turn the oven to 400F and allow it to come to temperature. While the pan is heating add all ingredients to your blender and process until very smooth. Once the oven reaches temperature allow the pan to continue heating for an additional two minutes. Once the pan is fully heated do not pull the pan from the oven but just slide out the rack with the pan on it and divide the mixture in the blender evenly between the six cups. Carefully slide the rack and muffin tin back into the oven. Do NOT open the oven for at least 30 minutes while the popovers bake. After 30 minutes check on them and depending on your oven they may need up to an additional 10 minutes to reach a deep brown color. Once fully baked, remove from the pan, break them open and add Cranberry butter, plain butter and/or jam or honey…DELISH!!

Cranberry Butter

4 TBS powdered sugar
8 TBS butter, softened
3/4 cup dried cranberries
zest of 1/2 an orange

Place all ingredients into the bowl of a food processor and blend until everything is combined and the cranberries pieces are very small.  Chill. Serve with hot popovers.

Enjoy!