Eggnog Bread Recipe for the Bread Machine
Every year I wait for eggnog to appear in the grocery stores. Not only does that mean that Christmas is on its way, it means that it’s time for one of my favorite bread recipes, Eggnog Bread!
Last Updated on December 5, 2022 – Originally posted in November of 2011
Featured Comment
This was delicious! I made one with some leftover eggnog, and immediately made a second loaf for an elderly neighbor. So glad I found it. ~ Joanna
Every year I wait for eggnog to appear in the grocery stores. Not only does that mean that Christmas is on its way, it means that it’s time for eggnog bread!
This yummy, easy eggnog bread recipe is great for the holidays. It’s also wonderful for breakfast on chilly autumn or winter mornings.
In addition to eggnog, the recipe calls for another seasonal item, dried cranberries. You can substitute raisins for the cranberries if you’d like, but the cranberries give the bread a little zing.
Plus cranberries look really pretty in the finished product.
Here’s the loaf of eggnog bread after it came out of the bread machine . . .
And here’s how it looked when it was sliced . . .
See how pretty those cranberries are?
And how does it taste? It’s really, really good! The bread has a cake-like texture. There’s a slight nutmeg, eggnog flavor. The cranberries give it a little bit of contrast.
AND if you’re not a cranberry fan, raisins work just fine too.
Here’s a loaf of eggnog bread with raisins instead of cranberries.
Let’s Talk About Eggnog
What the heck is in eggnog that makes it so darned good? It traditionally includes milk, cream, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon and of course, eggs.
It’s thick, rich and typically served with a little bourbon, rum or cognac. Just to be clear, the bread recipe doesn’t include any of those.
Historically speaking, a drink called posset may have been the forerunner of eggnog. Posset is a medieval British drink. The punch was made from hot milk curdled with wine or ale. Sometimes eggs and figs were added too.
Cranberries, Love ‘Em or Hate ‘Em
Cranberries are native to North America and filled with antioxidants. Great, right? However, for some people, the zingy, tart taste of cranberries is off putting.
There is a big divide about cranberries in my house. I love them and The Man of the House (TMOTH) does not enjoy them. Not even a little.
So while I think that this bread is better with cranberries, I make it with raisins. To be honest, eggnog bread is really good that way too.
French Toast Alert!
It’s a given that eggnog bread makes wonderful toast. A little cream cheese on top and I’m in heaven.
However, you might want to take it to the next level. The flavor, texture and existing egg content mean that this bread is a natural for French toast.
Don’t despair if it’s summer and you’d like some eggnog bread. I’ve got a recipe for Anytime Eggnog Bread. It captures the taste of this yummy bread, but without the eggnog.
FAQ for This Recipe
- Wondering about the difference between active dry yeast, instant yeast, bread machine yeast and quick rise yeast? I’ve got an article that explains the differences between different yeast types and how to switch between types of yeast.
- What do I mean by a smooth, round ball of dough? I’ve got an article (including images) that explains that.
- Learn about the differences between all-purpose flour and bread flour.
Eggnog Bread Instructions
This recipe is for a two-pound loaf. Use the basic cycle with either the light or medium crust setting.
Follow the instructions that came with your bread machine in terms of which ingredients to put in the bread machine first. With my bread machine, I add the liquids first.
I’ve always used Zojirushi bread machines. Over the years, I’ve made this bread with two different Zojirushi machines.
On the Zojirushi Virtuoso breadmaker, the medium crust is best with this recipe.
However, I liked the light crust setting when I used my Zojirushi BBCCX20 Bread Machine.
I advise people making this recipe for the first time to try the medium setting. Then make changes if needed based on your first loaf.
Make sure you check on the dough after five or ten minutes of kneading. Pop open the top of the bread machine and see how the dough is doing. It should be a round ball. If it’s too dry add liquid a teaspoon at a time until the dough balls up. If it looks too wet, add flour a tablespoon at a time until it looks as expected.
Eggnog Bread Ingredients
Again, this is for a two-pound loaf, using the basic cycle with the light or medium crust setting.
1 cup eggnog
½ cup milk
4 cups bread flour
½ cup dried cranberries or raisins
1 ¼ teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 Tablespoons oil or butter
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 ¾ teaspoons active dry yeast
Eggnog Bread for the Bread Machine
Recommended Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup (236.6 ml) eggnog
- ½ cup (118.3 ml) milk
- 4 cups (500 g) bread flour
- ½ cup (60.6 g) dried cranberries (raisins work fine too)
- 1 ¼ teaspoon (1.2 teaspoon) salt
- 2 Tablespoons sugar
- 1 Tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 ¾ teaspoons (1.7 teaspoons) active dry yeast
Instructions
- Follow the instructions that came with your bread machine in terms of which ingredients to put in the bread machine first.
- Over the years, I’ve made this bread with two different machines. For the Zojirushi Virtuoso breadmaker, I used the medium crust setting. For the Zojirushi BBCCX20 Bread Machine, I used the light crust setting.I advise people making this recipe for the first time to try the medium setting. Then make changes if needed based on your first loaf.
- Make sure you check on the dough after five or ten minutes of kneading. Pop open the top of the bread machine and look at the dough. It should be a round ball.
- If it’s too dry add liquid a teaspoon at a time until the dough balls up. If it looks too wet, add flour a tablespoon at a time until it looks as expected.
Notes
Nutrition
All information presented within this site is intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information on breadmachinediva.com should only be used as a general guideline. This information is provided as a courtesy and there is no guarantee that the information will be completely accurate. I try to provide accurate information to the best of my ability; however these figures should still be considered estimates.
This is a wonderful, comforting recipe and it fills the kitchen with aromas of Christmas when toasted. I made it for gifts at Christmas and everyone enjoyed it. I can’t possibly wait 12 months for eggnog to come back to the stores, so I plan to try the Anytime recipe.
Thank you so much for providing a backup recipe.
I make this recipe year round. When Eggnog is not available I use buttermilk. I also zest of an orange instead of cinnamon
What a great idea. I’ll have to try this!
This sounds wonderful and I’m eager to try it with dried cherries. But I have a question about the cinnamon. Obviously you’ve made the bread and it turned out fine, but I’ve always heard that cinnamon prevents yeast from rising. I guess I need reassurance that this isn’t true!
Thanks for all the great recipes.
Great question. Cinnamon can prohibit yeast growth. However, it doesn’t totally kill the yeast. It’s all a question of balancing the ingredients. This recipe has turned out for me every time I’ve made it. 🙂
Thanks for your answer. I’ve made four loaves with a variety of dried fruits and nuts. I’ve just gotten more eggnog, so more loaves are on the way. It’s a great recipe!
I had to make it.
My last carton of eggnog for the season.
After this, I have to make your non-eggnog eggnog bread.
I usually put butter or preserves on it.
I have to try your idea of cream cheese.
Oh my this bread is delicious, I made it with raisins and I will be making it again
Thanks so much for the comment!
What ki did bread machine is the best. I have to buy a new one? Mine has stopped backing. Hamilton Beach
Machine and not that old.
I’ve always used Zojirushi machines. I make a ton of bread and the Zojirushi’s really hold up. Here’s more about what bread machine to buy.
I don’t care for raisins or cranberries. Will it affect the bread if they are left out.
Otherwise the bread sounds wonderful.
The dried fruit sucks up some of the moisture. So you may need a little less milk. Otherwise the recipe should work.
I realize this site is devoted to bread-machine baking; however, can this eggnog bread be made the old-fashioned way (combo of KitchenAid mixer and hand kneading)?
I don’t see why not. It should work fine.
The recipe says 1 3/4 teaspoons Active Dry Yeast. So, you’re not using Instant or Bread Machine Yeast for this recipe?
Most of the recipes on this site use active dry yeast. If you’d like to use instant yeast, this article tells how to convert between the two.
For folks who want to make this when eggnog is out of season:
When I was a child… (Shoot I promised myself I would never say that.)
Anyway when I was a lot less old we had an eggnog flavoring we added to milk. Came in granule form. Can’t for the life of me remember the brand name but you want to check your grocery store wherever they stock the Nestle Quik stuff to see if it’s still around.
Failing that there are lots of eggnog flavor extracts today you can find online. Loran is a good brand.
You will have to figure out how to do the substitution. If anyone tries it do report how it works!
One more question…I usually let my Zo mix the dough and then bake in the oven. I am assuming that would work with this recipe also.
I’ve never done that, but it should be fine.
I’ve lately been having a lot of luck using instant yeast and setting my Zo to the ‘quick’ cycle (light crust). Do you think this would work with this recipe?
I’m not quite sure. If you do try this, let me know how it turns out.
Finally found some Silk Soy Eggnog and gave this a go this past weekend. I think I erred on the side of stupidity as I added a bit of Vital Gluten (doubt it needs it frankly!) and the loaf came out a bit poofy on one side. 🙁 BUT that was my error and won’t do it again. However, as for the recipe and the bread itself: FABULOUS DAHLING! The craisens added just the punch for this bread as the Soy ‘nog is not as heavy or as heady as regular eggnog would be. I put in a pinch of nutmeg as well as the cinnamon. I used some of KAF’s dried Baker’s milk and a bit of filtered water for the “milk”. This is certainly a do-again as often as possible bread recipe! Thanks, Marsha!
Yay!! It sounds great and I’ve got to give it a try.
I made this to donate to our food bank.
Is this done on the quick bread setting or another setting on the bread machine
Hi Rachel, You should use the regular/basic setting.
I made this with organic whole wheat flour (just a bit less than the recipe calls for) and it is fantastic!
Dena, thanks for letting everyone know about this healthy alternative!
Long story short :: after years of having my bread maker in the garage I told hubby to find it for me cause I wanted to give it another go. Glad I did but now I need recipes. Found your site yesterday and first one I saw was the Egg Nog recipe. My boys LOVE Egg Nog. Going to give this a whirl today. Wondering something though. Since they love the flavor of egg nog so much can I put ALL egg nog instead of egg nog/milk mix? Does the 1/2 C milk make a difference in texture or how the bread turns out? Really want a strong egg nog flavor.
Hi Diana, Thanks for writing and I’m so glad you found this site! What I’ve discovered is that the eggnog flavor depends a lot on the eggnog that you use. I’d start with the recipe as stated and then adjust on your second loaf.
Thanks going to try that 🙂
Oh one more quick question that I just thought of while getting out ingredients. Do I add the cranberries after the beep or ok to add at beginning? Since they are dried I assume all at once but since I am also so new to bread machine bread making I don’t want to goof it all up lol.
Hi Diana, I’m making a loaf of this myself right now. 🙂 I’m making this batch with raisins and I put them in at the very beginning. The instructions with the Zo say that dried fruit should go in at the add beep, but I haven’t had good luck with that. I’m also going to try it with the medium setting this time. The last loaf I made using the light crust setting looked like it could have cooked for a few more minutes. This is a newer model of Zo and I’m wondering if that was the reason.
The recipe for egg nog bread looks like it wld. be sturdy loaf, however if i use egg not that has alcohol in it will it change the texture, also can i use fresh cranberries? thanx
Hi Bonnie, I would not use the eggnog with the alcohol in it. If you don’t have the dried cranberries, I’d use raisins instead.
I have never thought about combining these two ingredients. I LOVE eggnog and I love bread but never thought about eggnog bread. I dont have a bread maker but I might order one just to try this concoction out!
Michelle, if you do come up with a non bread machine recipe please share. I know that other people will want to know.
This was delicious! I made one with some leftover eggnog, and immediately made a second loaf for an elderly neighbor. So glad I found it.
I’m so glad you liked it. I had some for breakfast over the weekend. I really like it too!
We make a home made eggnog, would that work in this recipe or should I get some store bought to make sure? The homemade one is a little thinner then the store bought
Home made eggnog? Yum!! I’d give it a try with your home made. I’ve noticed that the bread has a slightly different taste and consistency depending on what brand of eggnog I buy. They’re all good, but I like some better than others. There’s no way to know until you try though.
Made this bread using 2 cups bread flour, 1 1/2 whole wheat flour and 1/2 cup oats. Fabulous and much healthier.
Wendy, Thanks so much for sharing. That sounds healthy AND tasty!
made the bread tonight. it was perfectly delicious!! thanks for posting the receipe.
Sounds delish! Did you add all purpose flour or bread flour? And i have an older bread machine not sure which order to add the ingredients but this looks about right. Curious on the flour though….
Tiffany, It’s really, really good. I hope you like it. And thanks for the question about the flour. I used bread flour. I’ve updated the recipe because I’m sure you’re not the only one to wonder about that.
can’t wait to try it. going to make it tomorrow!!
thanks for posting.
This is amazing! I made it this morning and it did not disappoint. I did slightly warm the eggnog and milk as my bread machine does not produce well if the liquid ingredients are cold. I will definitely make this a few times during the holidays, may even try to add in some wheat flour while I am at it.
I’m glad you like it! If you try it with wheat flour let me know how it goes. I’m going to try it as French toast on Sunday.