When the weather turns chilly and holiday gatherings fill your calendar, nothing brings people together quite like a big bowl of Spiced Cranberry Punch. This vibrant ruby-red drink combines tart cranberries with warm spices and a hint of citrus to create something truly special. The beauty of this punch is its simplicity and versatility. You can serve it hot on a cold winter evening or chilled for a refreshing holiday party drink. The aroma alone will have your guests asking for the recipe before they even take their first sip. This punch works beautifully for Thanksgiving dinner, Christmas parties, New Year’s celebrations, or any time you want to add a festive touch to your table. It’s naturally sweet from the fruit juices, perfectly spiced with cinnamon and cloves, and can be enjoyed by everyone from children to adults.
Serving Quantity: Serves 12-14 people
Cooking Time:
- Prep time: 5 minutes
- Cooking time: 15 minutes
- Cooling time: 30 minutes (if serving cold)
- Total time: 50 minutes
Nutrition Information (per 8 oz serving):
- Calories: 110
- Total Fat: 0g
- Sodium: 10mg
- Total Carbohydrates: 28g
- Sugars: 24g
- Protein: 0g
- Vitamin C: 50% of daily value
- Iron: 2% of daily value
Ingredients
- 6 cups of cranberry juice
- 3 cups of apple juice
- 2 cups of orange juice
- Half a cup of fresh lime juice
- Quarter cup of brown sugar
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 1 teaspoon of whole cloves
- Half a teaspoon of whole allspice
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 orange sliced into thin rounds
- 1 apple sliced into thin wedges
- Half cup of fresh cranberries
- 1 liter of club soda or ginger ale (optional for fizz)
- Fresh mint leaves for garnish
Preparing Your Base
Start by getting out your largest pot or Dutch oven. Pour in the cranberry juice, apple juice, and orange juice. The combination of these three juices creates the perfect balance of tart and sweet. Add the brown sugar to the pot and stir it around a bit. Place your pot on the stove over medium heat. While the juices are warming up, drop in the cinnamon sticks. These will infuse the punch with that cozy, warming flavor that makes it taste like the holidays. Take your whole cloves and allspice and either wrap them in a small piece of cheesecloth tied with kitchen string, or put them in a metal tea ball. This makes them super easy to fish out later. Add your spice bundle and the bay leaves to the pot.
Simmering and Infusing
Let your punch come up to a gentle simmer. You’ll see small bubbles starting to break the surface and steam rising from the pot. Once it reaches this point, turn the heat down to low. You want it warm enough that you can see wisps of steam but not bubbling vigorously. Let everything simmer together for about 15 minutes. During this time, your kitchen will smell absolutely amazing. The spices will release their essential oils into the liquid, creating that rich, complex flavor. Give it a stir every few minutes to help the flavors blend together. After 15 minutes, turn off the heat and stir in the fresh lime juice. The lime adds a bright, zingy quality that keeps the punch from being too heavy or sweet.
Straining and Sweetening
Use a slotted spoon to fish out the cinnamon sticks, bay leaves, and your spice bundle. Press the spice bundle gently against the side of the pot to squeeze out any liquid before tossing it. Taste your punch at this point. If you like it sweeter, add another tablespoon or two of brown sugar and stir until it dissolves. Remember that if you’re adding club soda later, it will dilute the sweetness a bit, so you might want it slightly sweeter than your target taste.
Serving Hot or Cold
For a hot punch, keep the pot on the lowest heat setting to keep it warm without simmering. Ladle it into mugs and add a cinnamon stick to each mug for stirring and extra flavor. For a cold punch, let the mixture cool to room temperature, which takes about 30 minutes. Then transfer it to a large pitcher or bowl and refrigerate for at least an hour. Right before serving cold punch, pour it into your punch bowl and add the club soda or ginger ale if you want a fizzy version. The bubbles make it feel more celebratory and lighten up the drink beautifully.
Adding the Finishing Touches
Whether you’re serving hot or cold, add your fruit garnishes. Float the orange slices, apple wedges, and fresh cranberries in the punch bowl or pot. They look gorgeous bobbing around and guests can scoop them into their cups for a little fruit snack. The apples will soak up the spiced cranberry flavor and taste incredible. If serving cold, add ice to individual glasses rather than to the punch bowl itself. This keeps your punch from getting watered down. For hot punch, skip the ice obviously, but you can still add the fruit.
Garnishing Each Glass
When you ladle punch into cups or mugs, try to get a few pieces of fruit in each serving. Top each glass with a sprig of fresh mint. The mint adds a pop of green color that looks festive against the deep red punch, and the herbal aroma pairs surprisingly well with the warm spices. You can also rim glasses with cinnamon sugar for an extra special touch. Just rub a lime wedge around the rim and dip it in a shallow plate of mixed cinnamon and sugar.
Tips for the Best Spiced Cranberry Punch
Make this punch a day ahead if you can. The flavors really develop and get better after sitting in the fridge overnight. Just reheat it gently or serve it cold. If you want to make this punch for a crowd, it doubles or triples easily. Use the biggest pot you have or make it in batches. For an adult version, add a cup of dark rum or bourbon to the punch bowl, or set out rum and vodka so guests can spike their own glasses. You can substitute the fresh lime juice with bottled juice in a pinch, but fresh really does taste better. If you can’t find whole spices, use ground spices but cut the amounts in half. Use one cinnamon stick broken up, half a teaspoon of ground cloves, and a quarter teaspoon of ground allspice. You’ll need to strain the punch through a fine mesh strainer or coffee filter to remove the ground spices. Save money by buying cranberry juice cocktail instead of pure cranberry juice. The cocktail version is already sweetened so you might need less brown sugar. Frozen cranberries work just as well as fresh ones for floating in the punch. To keep punch warm for a party without overcooking it, transfer it to a slow cooker set on the warm setting. This is perfect for outdoor gatherings or holiday open houses. Leftover punch stores in the fridge for up to five days. Reheat individual servings in the microwave or enjoy it cold. You can also freeze it in ice cube trays and add the cubes to future batches or use them to chill the punch without diluting it.
