With a mortar and pestle crush whole cloves, fresh ginger, cinnamon sticks, vanilla bean, cardamom seeds, whole coriander seeds, whole black peppercorns and whole fennel seeds until coarsely ground. (If you don’t have a mortar and pestle, put the ginger and spices in a resealable plastic bag and crush with a meat mallet, the back of a heavy, cast iron pan or a rolling pin.)
15 whole cloves, 4 quarter-sized pieces of fresh ginger (1/2" thick), 2 cinnamon sticks, broken up, 1/2 vanilla bean, chopped, 1/2 tsp cardamom seeds, 1/2 tsp coriander seeds, 1/2 tsp whole black peppercorns, 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
In a small saucepan bring crushed spice mixture and water to a simmer. Remove from heat and add Darjeeling tea bags and steep for five minutes.
1 cup water, 4 Darjeeling tea bags
Whisk egg yolks, sugar and salt together in a saucepan while the tea is steeping. Gradually add heavy cream and whole milk, whisking until smooth. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is as thick as heavy cream. (If you accidently boil this, the eggnog will curdle and you will have scrambled eggs in your eggnog.) Off heat, strain the tea into eggnog.
4 egg yolks, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, pinch of table salt, 1 cup heavy cream, 1 cup whole milk
Serve in your favorite cup warm or chill until cold. Sprinkle ground or fresh nutmeg on top for garnish.
freshly grated or ground nutmeg
For those wanting to add liquor, a tablespoon (or more) of brandy, rum or bourbon will usually be sufficient. If you are serving this warm, add liquor after straining the tea. If you are serving it cold, chill the eggnog and stir in the liquor just before serving.
Brandy, rum, whisky, optional