Eggnog Truffles

Truffles are one of those things that always seemed too fancy to make at home.  There was no way a simple at-home cook like myself could pull off something like that.  But recently I have been seeing truffle recipes all over the place.  It seemed like it was time for me try it.  I thought if everyone else could do it, maybe I could too!  I still had some leftover eggnog that was dangerously close to expiring, and 'tis the season, so I gave it a shot.

Makeover Monday: Eggnog Pancakes with Butter Rum Flavored Syrup

Have you seen the commercials for IHOP's Holiday Hotcakes?  I have.  And I drool on my couch every time.  What really gets my salivary glands going is the eggnog hotcakes.  This is what their IHOP's eggnog pancakes consist of according to their website: "eggnog cream with cinnamon and nutmeg layered between sweet golden pancakes.  Crowned with a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar, a drizzle of butter rum flavored sauce and creamy whipped topping."  Uh, yum. 

Unfortunately, I have moved out of the big city of Topeka, Kansas and into a small town that doesn't even have a breakfast restaurant.  Yes, no breakfast restaurants of any kind.  Goose egg.  Zero.  None.  Not a pancake in sight!  So I knew if I was going to have eggnog pancakes, I was going to have to make them myself.  

Fortunately, I had some eggnog leftover from my Eggnog Spice Cake.  While I was snooping around IHOP's website, I made a stop in their nutrition section.  Bad idea.  It turns out that 4 of these too-good-to-be-true eggnog pancakes have 2,150 calories.  I knew I could never put a days worth of calories in my body for breakfast and look myself in the eye the next day.  But I really wanted some eggnog pancakes.

Eggnog Spice Cake with Rum Buttercream Meringue Frosting

Now that Thanksgiving is over, I can shamelessly put myself in Christmas mode.  And eggnog might as well be the official drink of Christmas.  I love the idea of eggnog, but I don't like actually drinking it.  I'm a skim milk drinker, and eggnog is like drinking melted ice cream.  But when I saw a carton of the festive beverage at the grocery store this week, I couldn't help but buy it. 

Although I'm probably not going to sit down and sip a glass of the stuff, I love the flavors or eggnog.  So I set out to find a way to enjoy the taste without having to choke down the drink.  What I came up with was a standard spice cake, but with a few adjustments to make it more eggnog-y.  

I debated with myself for awhile about what kind of frosting to make.  I considered a powdered sugar and eggnog mix frosting, but decided on a meringue-style buttercream.  Instead of incorporating eggnog into the frosting, I used the frosting as an opportunity to increase the rum flavor.  The generous amount of butter in the frosting is similar to the richness of drinking a glass of eggnog, but I think it is yummier.  And I added a bit of nutmeg to the frosting to compliment the nutmeg found in eggnog.