For holiday celebrations, having a sophisticated, elegant party punch recipe that serves a lot of people is crucial. For this punch, America’s Test Kitchen wanted to create a clean, simple recipe with a bit of sweetness but without too much muddled flavor. For a neutral yet flavorful juice, they chose white grape. Using ATK’s Fruits of the Forest Liqueur (see recipe below) gives this punch a deep, mysterious berry flavor as well as a pretty color. A hint of orange liqueur rounded out the fruity sweetness. This recipe calls for a prosecco or cava, but you can use Champagne instead if you like.

If you plan to let the punch sit in the bowl for longer than 30 minutes, add six large (2-inch) ice cubes to the bowl to keep it properly chilled. This recipe calls for ATK’s Fruits of the Forest liqueur but you can use store-bought raspberry liqueur, such as Chambord.

Serves:  makes about 16 cocktails
Total Time:  10 minutes
(Fruits of the Forest Liqueur need to be made ahead of time –  takes 1 week)

Holiday Punch Ingredients

  • 3 (750-ml) bottles dry sparkling wine, such as prosecco or cava, chilled
  • 12 ounces white grape juice, chilled
  • 6 ounces Fruits of the Forest Liqueur (see recipe below)
  • 6 ounces orange liqueur
  • 5 ounces (1 cup) blackberries, blueberries, and/or raspberries
  • 5 ounces strawberries, hulled and quartered (1 cup)
  • ½ cup fresh mint leaves

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a large punch bowl.

Serve in chilled old-fashioned glasses or punch cups.


Fruits of the Forest Liqueur Recipe (delicious homemade option for your holiday punch)

Serves:  makes about 16 ounces

Ingredients:

  • 12 ounces vodka
  • ounces Simple Syrup

Directions:

  1. Place blackberries, strawberries, and vodka in a pint-size glass jar. Cover tightly and shake to combine.
  2. Store jar in a cool, dark place for 1 week, shaking mixture once every other day.
  3. Set a fine-mesh strainer in a medium bowl and line with a triple layer of cheesecloth. Strain vodka mixture through the prepared strainer, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard solids.
  4. Return infused vodka to clean jar and add simple syrup. Cover and gently shake to combine.

(Fruits of the Forest Liqueur can be stored in a cool, dark place for up to 1 year. Shake gently before using.)