This Warm Vanilla Custard Drink is a comforting caffeine-free drinkable custard that’s perfect for an easy breakfast or tasty treat! Kids and adults alike will love it.
There are affiliate links in this post β please read my full disclosure policy. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Iβve been making this warm vanilla custard drink since my college years. Itβs a great swap for coffee and hot chocolate drinks, while still being warm and cozy.
We love it as a quick breakfast (after all, it does contain eggs!), a warm-me-up drink or just to wind down with before bedtime.
The best part is that itβs quick and easy to make using just a few ingredients that you likely already have on hand. And you can enjoy it anytime because it’s not packed with caffeine. Itβs hard to find warm drinks that check all of those boxes!
One more thing. If you have a stick hand blender it makes mixing up this drinking custard super easy! I just put the egg mixture into the cup that comes with the blender (you could use a wide-mouth glass jar too) and then add the milk to that. Itβs much less hassle than pulling out my big blender every time.
Vanilla Custard Drink Ingredients
- Milk. We used regular milk, but any milk should work.
- Sugar. Adjust the amount based on your preferences.
- Eggs. Makes the drink extra creamy.
- Salt. This helps bring all of the flavors together.
- Vanilla. I use regular vanilla extract, but vanilla bean paste can be subbed.
- Ground Nutmeg. Adds a nice cozy flavor!
How to Make a Warm Vanilla Custard Drink
STEP 1: Heat the sugar and milk in a small pan until it simmers and comes to a boil.
STEP 2: In the meantime, blend the salt, vanilla, and eggs.
STEP 3: Once the milk begins to bubble, immediately remove it from the heat and a little to the egg mixture.
STEP 4: Pour in the rest of the milk and blend well.
STEP 5: Serve in two mugs and top with a dash of nutmeg.
Helpful Tips and Variations
- Raw Egg Concerns. Bringing the milk and sugar to a boil, then adding the eggs, allows them to βcookβ enough that they are no longer raw. This process is also known as tempering eggs. Adding just a little milk cooks the eggs just enough that they do not scramble. If you do get a few little chunks of egg, just run the drink through a mesh strainer before serving.
- Maple Syrup. Can be used in place of sugar and will add a nice extra hint of flavor.
- Dairy Free. Make this dairy-free by using non-dairy milk.
Other recipes that you’ll enjoy:
Drinkable Warm Vanilla Custard
Ingredients
- 2 c. milk
- ΒΌ c. sugar (or more or less to taste)
- 2 eggs
- pinch of salt
- β tsp. vanilla
- ground nutmeg
Instructions
- In a small pan, heat the milk and sugar just until it starts to simmer and come to a boil. (see Notes below)
- In the meantime, blend the eggs, salt and vanilla.
- Once the milk mixture starts to bubble, remove it from the heat and add a small amount of the milk to the egg mixture. Blend immediately. (see Notes below)
- Add the rest of the milk to the egg mixture and blend well.
- Pour the warm custard into two mugs and sprinkle with nutmeg.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- Heating: Bringing this just to a boil essentially “cooks” the egg enough that it isn’t considered raw any longer.
- Adding the Milk: If you add all the milk at once, sometimes the egg will cook too much and you’ll end up with little chunks of cooked egg in your custard, which obviously isn’t so great. π
- Maple Syrup: If you prefer to use maple syrup instead of sugar, you may. It adds an extra hint of delicious flavor!
Tris
I made a half recipe exactly as you instructed and itβs fantastic! Its frothy and delicious. I was nervous about having either raw or scrambled egg but adding the hot milk slowly while mixing with the immersion blender worked perfectly. One suggestion: mix it in a much bigger container than you think you need, the immersion blender can send the liquid flying.
Lydia Beiler
So happy to hear that you enjoyed it, Tris! And good tip about making sure you use a fairly large container if you are using an immersion blender. I like to use a quart canning jar or something that is quite tall because, like you said, that liquid can really get flying it you aren’t careful!
Sharon
Tried it. Loved it. I love a hot drink before going to bed. As much as I love coffee I can’t drink it after about 1:00 pm or I’m up all night… this was the perfect solution. Hot, creamy and delicious! (and, if you use sugar substitute you can count it as low carb…)
Lydia Beiler
So delighted that you enjoyed it, Sharon! It’s the perfect cozy drink, especially for those of us that have to avoid caffeine.
Vanessa
Thanks for sharing! Does it reheat well?
Lydia Beiler
I’ve never tried reheating it and to be honest, I’m not totally sure if it would do funny things to it or not, with the egg in there. Now you have me curious and I kind of want to make extra just to see!
Suzanne
This looks so good! What a great treat to make for friends or to enjoy yourself!
Lydia Beiler
It’s such a nice changeup from the usual hot drinks (tea, coffee, hot chocolate)!
Donna
Can you use almond milk?
Lydia Beiler
Yes, I know several people that love making this with almond milk. Go for it!
Cia Arielle
Have you used a thermometer while making this to check the temperature? Iβm a pregnant mom who is terrified of eating anything I shouldnβtβ¦ like raw egg π . I know you said it essentially cooks the egg but if you have a temperature you make sure it reaches I would LOVE to know!
Lydia Beiler
First of all, congratulations on the pregnancy! Secondly, I haven’t ever used a thermometer to check the temp. But I just did a quick Google search and apparently milk simmers at 180 to 190 degrees and eggs should be heated to 160 degrees to be fully cooked. Does that help at all?
Jessica Thomas
So delicious! Itβs a cold and rainy fall day and my husband just had oral surgery. I wanted some liquid protein and something for me to drink too. This is was perfect! Iβll be making it again! ππ»
Lydia Beiler
So glad to hear that you enjoyed it, Jessica! Oral surgery is no fun, for sure, but this drink is definitely perfect for the occasion. I hope your husband’s recovery went well!
B
WOW. This is awesome! Soooo yummy on a frigid day. I used 1/4 cup brown sugar and it was epic. Thanks for the recipe!
Lydia Beiler
It’s is the perfect cozy drink, isn’t it? Thanks for taking the time to let me know that you loved it!