Some flavors have the remarkable ability to conjure an entire season. Eggnog is one of those flavors. Rich and creamy, fragrant with nutmeg and vanilla, it can instantly evoke the holidays—the warmth of a kitchen in December, gatherings of family and friends, glasses raised in celebration, and recipes and rituals that return faithfully year after year.
Our newest Limited Batch, Eggnog Cashew & Pecan Butter, is a creative collaboration with our talented friends at Spicewalla, the groundbreaking spice company led by Meherwan and Molly Irani, another partners-in-business-and-life team, based nearby in Asheville, North Carolina. We’ve long admired their obsessive commitment to sourcing exceptional spices and the wonderfully creative, chef-driven spirit they bring to everything they make. When the opportunity arose to dream up something new together, we wanted to build a recipe around a spice that could transport us somewhere familiar while still giving us plenty of room to play. Few ingredients do that quite like nutmeg, and few foods or drinks showcase nutmeg as beautifully, or as nostalgically, as eggnog.
Eggnog’s story stretches back centuries. Its ancestry is generally traced to medieval Britain and posset, a warm drink made with milk or cream, ale or wine, and spices that eventually evolved to include eggs. Because ingredients like milk, eggs, and spices could be expensive, early versions were associated with prosperity and celebratory toasts. The tradition traveled across the Atlantic with European colonists, where it found especially fertile ground in America. Eggs and dairy were plentiful, Caribbean rum was readily available, and later whiskey and bourbon became distinctly American additions. By the 18th century, versions of eggnog had become fixtures of winter celebrations in the colonies and young United States. Over generations, the creamy, spice-dusted drink became inseparable from the American holiday season.
For our seasonal nut butter interpretation, we weren’t interested in simply making something that tasted like eggnog. We wanted to understand the elements that make eggnog so comforting—lushness, warming spice, gentle sweetness, a little holiday indulgence—and build layers of those qualities through ingredients we love.
We begin with fresh-roasted Fair Labor cashews, whose remarkable creaminess and natural sweetness combine with buttery, deeply roasted Organic Texas pecans to create a rich foundation for this nut butter.
Then comes the ingredient at the heart of this collaboration: Spicewalla nutmeg. Nutmeg is often treated as a supporting player, but great nutmeg reminds you just how extraordinary the spice can be—warm and woody, but also intensely aromatic, subtly sweet, and naturally perfect with roasted nuts. It is the flavor that transforms richness and creaminess into something unmistakably evocative of eggnog. Working with Spicewalla gave us the opportunity to let that character come forward rather than disappear into the background.
Pure Vermont maple syrup provides the sweetness, with its complex caramelized and woodsy notes beautifully complementing both the roasted nuts and nutmeg. Ground vanilla beans add another layer of sweetness-enhancing, aromatic warmth and those wonderful flecks of real vanilla throughout the jar. Finally, Jacobsen Sea Salt brings the entire recipe into focus, balancing the maple and amplifying the flavors of the nuts and spices.
The result is creamy, deeply nutty, gently sweet, and wonderfully aromatic. Cashews provide the lushness; pecans bring toasted depth; maple adds a touch of sweetness; vanilla rounds the edges; and Spicewalla’s nutmeg rises above it all with that unmistakable fragrance that tells your senses, almost before you’ve tasted a bite: the holidays are here.
Founded by the aforementioned Iranis, Spicewalla was inspired by Meherwan’s childhood in Maharashtra, India, where spices are treated like fresh produce—sourced with care, roasted, and ground for maximum flavor and aroma. Building on the same chef-driven approach to sourcing and blending spices that Meherwan brought to his James Beard Award-winning restaurant, Chai Pani, Spicewalla makes exceptionally fresh, vibrant spices available to home cooks and professional kitchens alike, celebrating spices not simply as ingredients, but as storytellers that carry traditions, evoke memories, and bring people together around the table. This approach to food as a source of shared joy, connection, and storytelling mirrors our own values, and we are so proud to partner with Spicewalla on this special holiday nut butter recipe.
Available October through December, while supplies last, this nut butter is perfect for warm toast or English muffins, spooned over oatmeal, paired with crisp apples, baked it into holiday treats, or simply passed around the kitchen table with spoons at the ready.
Cheers,
Mark
