Egg Cream
Intro: Egg Cream
Quick and easy way to make a New York Egg Cream and bring a little bit of Brooklyn home!
The iconic New York egg cream is a drink that is considered wildly difficult to bottle. Over time the seltzer loses it's fizz becoming flat and separates from the milk, which is neither refreshing or appetizing. Consequently, egg creams are usually only found in fountain shops, delis, and old drug stores.....until now. For the East Coasters looking to take a sip down memory lane, or the rest of the world looking to dive into a delicious and refreshing drink this Instructable is for you.
Sweet chocolate, cold milk, and full of bubbles, the egg cream has me hooked! Follow these easy steps and you just might be too.
The iconic New York egg cream is a drink that is considered wildly difficult to bottle. Over time the seltzer loses it's fizz becoming flat and separates from the milk, which is neither refreshing or appetizing. Consequently, egg creams are usually only found in fountain shops, delis, and old drug stores.....until now. For the East Coasters looking to take a sip down memory lane, or the rest of the world looking to dive into a delicious and refreshing drink this Instructable is for you.
Sweet chocolate, cold milk, and full of bubbles, the egg cream has me hooked! Follow these easy steps and you just might be too.
STEP 1: Materials
You'll need the following:
**NOTE: Traditionally, Fox's U-Bet Chocolate Syrup was used (and still is!) to create the Egg Cream. Other chocolate syrups can be substituted. While creating this Instructable, I tried both Santa Cruz Organic Chocolate Syrup and the recommended Fox's. The Santa Cruz brand was thick and harder to mix without loosing too much of the milky foam an egg cream is known for. The Santa Cruz flavor in the finished egg cream was also lacking in comparison to the Fox's.
- Whole Milk*
- Seltzer Water
- Chocolate Syrup**
- Cold and Frosty Glass (8oz)
- Spoon
**NOTE: Traditionally, Fox's U-Bet Chocolate Syrup was used (and still is!) to create the Egg Cream. Other chocolate syrups can be substituted. While creating this Instructable, I tried both Santa Cruz Organic Chocolate Syrup and the recommended Fox's. The Santa Cruz brand was thick and harder to mix without loosing too much of the milky foam an egg cream is known for. The Santa Cruz flavor in the finished egg cream was also lacking in comparison to the Fox's.
STEP 2: Get Frosty
This might be the simplest step, but it will vastly improve your finished egg cream. Place your glass in the freezer for a minimum of 3 minutes and up to several hours. You can do this while gathering your other ingredients. The chilled glass will keep your drink cooler and crisper longer.
STEP 3: Time for Chocolate
If you have not already done so, remove your glass from the freezer.
Add 1 inch of chocolate syrup to the bottom of your chilled glass.
Add 1 inch of chocolate syrup to the bottom of your chilled glass.
STEP 4: Milk
Now it's time for the milk! The milk is what gives this frosty treat the creamy texture and flavor. As noted in step one, it's preferable to use whole milk which will froth and foam better than skim, 1% or 2% milk.
Pour 1 inch of whole milk into your glass.
By the end of this step you should have an equal ratio of chocolate to milk. If you want your egg cream to be even creamier and richer, add more milk. If you'd like less or more chocolate, subtract and add accordingly.
Pour 1 inch of whole milk into your glass.
By the end of this step you should have an equal ratio of chocolate to milk. If you want your egg cream to be even creamier and richer, add more milk. If you'd like less or more chocolate, subtract and add accordingly.
STEP 5: Seltzer
Time for the bubbly! This is the step that adds the carbonation and bubbles to your egg cream.
Pour in your seltzer water, leaving at least an inch at the top for the froth and foam as the seltzer and milk react.
If you are lucky enough to have a pressurized cylinder and can make your own seltzer, this is the perfect opportunity. Fill your siphon bottle with fresh cold water and attach a fresh CO2 cartridge. Tilt your glass and spray an even stream of fresh seltzer into the glass. Make sure to leave room for the foamy head to form, about 1 inch. You will have a beautiful foamy chocolate head! If you'd like to avoid the brown foam head, simply combine the milk and seltzer first before adding the chocolate syrup.
Pour in your seltzer water, leaving at least an inch at the top for the froth and foam as the seltzer and milk react.
If you are lucky enough to have a pressurized cylinder and can make your own seltzer, this is the perfect opportunity. Fill your siphon bottle with fresh cold water and attach a fresh CO2 cartridge. Tilt your glass and spray an even stream of fresh seltzer into the glass. Make sure to leave room for the foamy head to form, about 1 inch. You will have a beautiful foamy chocolate head! If you'd like to avoid the brown foam head, simply combine the milk and seltzer first before adding the chocolate syrup.
STEP 6: Stir to Success
Pick up that spoon and start stirring. Stir until all of your chocolate syrup has been mixed into the milk. You want to be careful not to stir too much or you will lose some of the froth and foam created by the addition of the seltzer.
An aesthetic note: some egg cream makers will combine the milk and the seltzer first before adding the chocolate syrup to keep their foam pure and white. I've found that as long as you wait to stir until after the milk and seltzer have had time to mix and mingle, and you don't stir overaggressively, your foam head will maintain it's pristine white color without taking on too much of the chocolatey brown tinge at the top.
An aesthetic note: some egg cream makers will combine the milk and the seltzer first before adding the chocolate syrup to keep their foam pure and white. I've found that as long as you wait to stir until after the milk and seltzer have had time to mix and mingle, and you don't stir overaggressively, your foam head will maintain it's pristine white color without taking on too much of the chocolatey brown tinge at the top.
STEP 7: Enjoy!
Kick back and enjoy your egg cream. Hopefully you've brought a little bit of Brooklyn back into your life.
A final note on the history of the egg cream: You've gotten this far, and maybe you're asking yourself, egg? cream? What's with the name? There are a bunch of different theories as to where the name came from. Here are a few to tide you over:
A final note on the history of the egg cream: You've gotten this far, and maybe you're asking yourself, egg? cream? What's with the name? There are a bunch of different theories as to where the name came from. Here are a few to tide you over:
- A mispronunciation of the French "Chocolat et crème".
- Egg Cream evolved from using grade "A" cream as an ingredient. "A" morphed into "egg".
- Real eggs were popular in milkshakes and other fountain drinks around the time the NY Egg Cream was invented. At the invention of the NY Egg Cream, they cut out both the eggs and cream in order to save money and potentially increase profits.
15 Comments
Vault-Tec45 3 years ago
Abratforarat 8 years ago
Think I'll use cream to cause no one drinks milk here
Abratforarat 8 years ago
Can I use just water? (When I get braces I can't have sparkling water...and my mom wont let me have soda unless special occasion.) I plan to enjoy this...maybe Wednesday...
glamonica 10 years ago
chopperdr 10 years ago
no there really is no eggs in a traditional egg cream, it got named that way because the way it froths up, looks like beaten egg whites - found on the food network show "Good eats" Alton Brown did a whole episode on drinks :)
kelleymarie 10 years ago
Hi Glamonica! That's interesting, I'll have to try it. From what I've read, traditional New York Egg Creams are not made with real eggs, or I guess I should say are no longer. It's thought that eggs and real cream may have once been involved but are not anymore--maybe to save money on the coast of eggs and cream?
Here are some websites and articles I've gleaned that information from:
Edible Brooklyn
NYTimes
Egg Cream Wiki
Hope that helps! I'll try out your version to compare.
glamonica 10 years ago
Definitely try it with the egg. There won't be much of a difference, it will just be slightly frothy and creamier.
And thank you for inspiring me and the little woman to make a variety of egg cream variations.
mevans37 10 years ago
nascat 10 years ago
james.rasa 10 years ago
kelleymarie 10 years ago
Hey james.rasa! I would have thought so to given the name, but as it turns out, there are no eggs involved. There are numerous theories about where the name comes from--grade "A" milk which transpired from A to egg, or the French chocolat et crème (mispronounced "chocolate egg cream"). It is also thought that it could be because eggs were originally used in milkshakes, and what we now know of as the egg cream has since lost the egg and cream replacing them with milk and seltzer which were cheaper ingredients. I'm sure there are other reasons too but those are the ones I've found.
james.rasa 10 years ago
mhe, for the better, drinking raw eggs would give me the creeps :P thx for sharing
poisonhydra 10 years ago
I write this while drinking the one i just made, and it is AWESOME. By the way, great instructable.
kelleymarie 10 years ago
Thank you Poisonhydra! Glad you enjoyed it!
MOHD77 10 years ago