Champagne Punch
This is my go-to punch for holiday parties. It’s always a hit and people ask for it year-after-year. It’s so good that I need to start serving it year round! Heck why limit it to just the holidays? Why not bridal and baby showers too? Hmmmm now that I think of it…bachelorette parties as well! Yeah this is a multi-purpose punch that packs a punch too! Champagne Punch to the party rescue!
Servings
12
servingsPrep time
5
minutesIngredients
1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple
1 cup lemon juice
1 large jar maraschino cherries (save 1 cup of the juice)–see notes for optional non-staining substitution
1 cup dark rum
1 bottle champagne or sparkling wine
Cranberries (optional)
Rosemary sprigs (optional garnish)
Directions
- In a large punch bowl, add the entire contents of the can of crushed pineapple, lemon juice and dark rum
- Drain 1 cup of juice from the jar of maraschino cherries and add the juice to the punch. Then add the remaining cherries (drain the remaining juice and set aside)
- Chill for 30 minutes
- Just before serving, add the champagne or sparkling wine
- Garnish with rosemary sprigs if desired
Notes
- A day ahead of time I will make cranberry ice cubes. This is an optional step for sure, but I like to be fancy at the holidays! Fill ice cube trays with water and add 3 cranberries to each “cube” and freeze overnight
- It’s very important to NOT add the champagne until serving, otherwise it will loose it’s effervescence. I typically use Korbel Sparkling wine
- For the lemon juice, this is one of the few times that I don’t use fresh! I use the bottled version.
- If you have a light carpet situation and are concerned about serving a reddish colored punch (it just takes one guest to spill…..); then I have substituted simple sugar for the cherry juice. In a medium sized saucepan, bring 1 cup of water to a boil, add 1/2 to 1 cup sugar and stir until dissolved. Add to punch until it has the desired sweetness. Since this liquid is hot, you will need to refrigerate the punch for longer than the 30 minutes. I have made the punch both ways and it’s a hit either way!