Browsing Tag

punch

Entertaining, Party Recipes and Pairings
A Quick Primer on Bubbly and Holiday Entertaining the Bubbly Girl Way

I know entertaining can be stressful, but it doesn’t have to be. All you need, really, are a few fool-proof recipes, a relatively clean house and an outfit that makes you feel stunning. My first rule of entertaining is to plan on opening a bottle of bubbly — either Champagne or sparkling wine — as soon as guests arrive. People get excited when they see that curvy bottle and hear the pop as it opens. It reminds them of good times and it will put them in the party mood. You can serve it straight, pour it into a punch or a sparkling cocktail. The great thing is that these days there are so many choices when it comes to sparkling wine and Champagne. So why not try something new? You could choose a champagne from a family who grows their own grapes and then makes it into a distinctive…
December 27, 2012
Drinks
Punch up Your Next Party: A Sparkling Spring Recipe

If you’ve been to a popular mixology bar in the past six months, you probably already know that punch is the hip drink on offer right now. The vintage concoction that your grandma or Aunt Gert loved making is having a Renaissance of sorts. Of course, a certain sort of punch never really lost its appeal at kids birthdays or coming out parties, but that’s not the drink I’m talking about. The punch that’s popular again takes its cues from the circa 1740s mix of fruits, spirits, spice and wine that Esquire’s Dave Wondrich writes about so ably in Punch: The Pleasures & Perils of the Flowing Bowl. My sparkling cocktail recipe book The Bubbly Bar: Champagne & Sparkling Wine Cocktails for Every Occasion (Clarkson Potter, 2009) features several punch recipes, including the popular Framboise Apricot Punch which features three kinds of spirits plus bubbly. The March issue of Sunset,…
February 26, 2011
Drinks
Framboise Apricot Punch Recipe

I have my friend Kalisa, an extraordinary cook and entertainer who once catered to ex-presidents, to thank for this recipe. It’s sweet and potent and you and your friends will want more when the bowl is dry. 1 cup orange juice ½ cup water 1 cup pomegranate seeds (or frozen raspberries depending on season), divided use ¾ cup Framboise (raspberry eau de vie) ½ cup VSOP Cognac ¼ cup apricot brandy 1 orange, thinly sliced 1 lemon, thinly sliced ½ cup sugar ½ cup sour mix 2 bottles Rotari or Mirabelle brut sparkling wine Combine the orange juice, water and ½ cup pomegranate seeds (or raspberries) in a small ring gelatin mold or a small square plastic container with a lid. Freeze for 24 hours. Combine the Framboise, Cognac and brandy, orange and lemon slices and sugar in a plastic container. Let fruit soak in the liquor overnight. The day…
January 30, 2011