Classic Egg Creams Recipe

This delicious NYC soda fountain staple has been popular for well over a century.

By
Alexandra Penfold
Alexandra Penfold
Alexandra Penfold is a literary agent, author, blogger, and recipe developer who has contributed an extensive number of baking and candy recipes to Serious Eats. 
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Updated Sep. 20, 2022
Overhead close-up of an egg cream served with a straw next to a bottle of chocolate syrup.

Serious Eats / Alexandra Penfold

Why It Works

  • This tried-and-true formula has the right balance of syrup to milk and seltzer.
  • Pouring the seltzer off of a spoon and vigorously swizzling the ingredients together creates that signature layer of foam.

Ah, the egg cream. Is there a more iconic New York beverage? The history of the egg cream is an interesting, if muddled, one. For starters the drink contains neither eggs nor cream. And there isn't a popular consensus on where the unusual name comes from. Is it a mispronunciation of the French "chocolat et crème" or an Americanization of the Yiddish phrase "echt keem" which means "pure sweetness"? We'll likely never know.

What we do know is that it's been a popular beverage at soda fountains and delis for well over a century. You can still find egg creams in the City, though it's not as easy as when they were at the height of fashion. An egg cream is a simple beverage, just chocolate syrup (Fox's U-Bet, only!), milk, and seltzer.

Maybe for modern times it's not pizzazz-y enough—I mean, if you drink venti caramel, mocha, and cookie crunch Frappuccinos for breakfast, it might seem rather tame. But to me, it's a sip of joy, a nostalgic delight, and one that you can make at home for an anytime trip down memory lane.

February 2014

Recipe Facts

5

(1)

Active: 5 mins
Total: 5 mins
Serves: 1 serving

Rate & Comment

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons Fox's U-Bet chocolate syrup (see notes)

  • 1 1/2 ounces whole milk (see notes)

  • 3/4 cup seltzer (see notes)

Directions

  1. In a tall glass, add chocolate syrup and milk. Tilt the glass slightly and pour (or spritz) the seltzer off your stirring spoon until you have a nice foamy head that's nearing the top of the glass. Stir vigorously to mix the chocolate in and serve immediately.

Special Equipment

12-ounce tall glass, straw, long handled spoon

Notes

I belong to the traditionalist camp that says Fox's U-Bet syrup or bust. But if you must use a different chocolate syrup, well, don't say I didn't warn you.

I find that low-fat milks make the drink a bit watery for my taste, so I use whole milk here.

If you have a seltzer dispenser you'll get a nicer, foamier head, but you can still make this drink pouring bottled seltzer off a spoon and stirring vigorously.

Read More

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
286 Calories
10g Fat
47g Carbs
3g Protein
Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 1
Amount per serving
Calories 286
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 10g 13%
Saturated Fat 6g 31%
Cholesterol 7mg 2%
Sodium 52mg 2%
Total Carbohydrate 47g 17%
Dietary Fiber 2g 7%
Total Sugars 32g
Protein 3g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 95mg 7%
Iron 2mg 13%
Potassium 222mg 5%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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