When I was a kid, there was nothing I liked better than that deep yellowish-gold, ultra thick and viscous, unctuously sweet eggnog that you could buy from the store. Well, a couple of years ago I discovered that it is as easy to mix up a batch of that stuff for yourself at home as it is to make a margarita--and it's so much more delicious than store-bought, chemical-laden eggnog that, yes, it's funny.

So, again, I give you my recipe, although it's a little revised from last years (more boozy, mostly). You probably have what you need to make it around the house already, if not, you can get things like nutmeg and cream and rum at any Safeway. So take my word for it and don't take the lazy way out. Before you go to bed tonight, mix up a batch of this high-proof eggnog and have happy, sugarplum hallucinations all night long.

Boozy Eggnog

3 oz whole milk
3oz half and half
3 oz brandy
3 oz amber rum
2 oz Madeira (optional, if used only use 2 oz each of brandy and rum)
1 egg
6 teaspoons sugar
5 dashes cardamom
5 dashes nutmeg
3 dashes allspice
ice

Combine all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker and fill with ice. Cover and shake vigorously for at least 20 seconds. Strain into two tumblers. Sprinkle nutmeg on top of each glass.