By Post-Thanksgiving leftovers. Turkey stock. Turkey pot pie. The transformation. Made a turkey tetrazzini this year too — something new, pasta with turkey and mushrooms and cream sauce, baked with Parmesan on top. Not Betty's food. Betty did not know from tetrazzini. But good food that uses the leftovers with respect, which is all Betty would ask.
December dark beginning. The short days. The kitchen as the center of gravity, the oven running, the stove warming the room. Made beef stew Friday — the seasonal marker, the first heavy soup that says winter is here and I am ready for it with a Dutch oven and a chuck roast and four hours of patience.
Clay's been sober for over two years now since the last relapse in January 2023. The count is not something he talks about. It's not something any of us talk about. It just is — the sobriety is a fact of Clay's life the way the bronchitis is a fact of mine, a managed condition, a thing that requires daily attention and daily choice and daily showing up, and the showing up is the sobriety and the sobriety is the showing up and they are the same thing.
The tetrazzini was the experiment and the stew was the seasonal marker, but when December comes and the kitchen is already warm and the house is quiet and Clay is doing what Clay does — showing up, every day, without ceremony — you want something that belongs to the season without demanding anything from it. The Holiday Eggnog Pie is that thing: simple and rich and right for the time of year, the kind of dessert that doesn’t need a reason beyond December being December and the oven already being on.
Holiday Eggnog Pie
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes (plus chilling) | Total Time: 4 hours 15 minutes | Servings: 8
Ingredients
- 1 pre-made 9-inch graham cracker crust
- 1 package (3.4 oz) instant vanilla pudding mix
- 1 1/2 cups eggnog
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, plus more for topping
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 cup frozen whipped topping, thawed, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Mix the filling. In a large bowl, whisk together the instant vanilla pudding mix and eggnog for about 2 minutes, until the mixture begins to thicken. It will be thicker than standard pudding due to the richness of the eggnog.
- Add spices and vanilla. Stir in the nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, and vanilla extract until evenly combined.
- Fold in whipped topping. Gently fold in 3/4 cup of the thawed whipped topping until the mixture is smooth and no streaks remain. Reserve the remaining 1/4 cup for serving.
- Fill the crust. Pour the eggnog filling into the graham cracker crust and spread it evenly with a spatula.
- Chill. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight, until the filling is fully set and slices cleanly.
- Serve. Top each slice with a small dollop of the reserved whipped topping and a light dusting of ground nutmeg before serving.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 265 | Protein: 4g | Fat: 11g | Carbs: 38g | Fiber: 0g | Sodium: 310mg