Sparkling NYE Cocktail Punch
SPARKLING CHAMPAGNE NYE Cocktail Punch Recipe
It’s that weird time of year, the week between Christmas and New Year’s, when the holiday season starts to slip away, and everything just kind of seems to blend and blur together, the only thing you wear are sweat pants and you basically don’t leave the couch, except to get more food. And even though you don’t really know what time of day it is or where you are, you do know that NYE is fast approaching, if only because it’s the one final time to really imbibe and indulge before the new year (and new resolutions and goals) sets in.
Speaking of NYE, how are you planning to celebrate this year? Personally, I’m a big fan of the at-home bash. You can be cozy and chill, in your own environment, serving the food and drinks you like best, in unlimited supply, with the music of your choice, comfortably surrounded by family and friends instead of awkwardly packed into some dark corner of a bar with strangers. I mean, maybe it’s just my old age showing, but I honestly can’t think of a better way to ring in the new year with a bang than with good food, good drinks, good company, good tunes and good vibes.
Here’s another fun thing about a NYE spent at home-you can serve punch. Scratch that. You need to serve punch. Sure, there are lots of fun and festive cocktail recipes you can serve on new year’s eve and sure, a punch recipe can seem a little old-fashioned, maybe even a bit dated, like something our grandparents would have enjoyed back in their day, but don’t knock it, til you try it, er, should I say “until you sip it”?! Not only is a cocktail punch an easy way to serve cocktails for a group, it’s also incredibly simple to make and really fun to serve. The way I see it is that it’s old-fashioned in a good way, like something from the roaring twenties or straight out of a Gatsby-like soiree, and who doesn’t want that, especially for New Year’s Eve party? Plus, everyone can help themselves and it eliminates the need for one person to spend their NYE shaking up cocktails for everyone else all night long (because, let’s be real, who actually wants to do that?!).
The recipe I’m sharing today is for a punch that feels particularly fun and festive for a NYE celebration. Since there’s a lot of heavy food this time of year, and typically at NYE parties, I wanted to make a drink that was light and bright, think things like citruses, fresh herbs and florals, to balance out any rich and creamy fare. Plus, light and bright flavors work well to pair with so many different types of food. And then, feeling inspired by the typical NYE fireworks, sparklers and confetti, as well as the idea of a Gatsby-stye gathering (which somehow seems to always be my NYE party theme default, whether I’m celebrating with 2 people or 20), I liked the idea of incorporating things that are golden and glittering and sparkling. So this champagne punch is where I ended up. There’s lots of lemon, gin and elderflower liquor to keep it light and bright and, of course, bubbly to make it sparkle. Then lots of lemon sorbet because, well, more lemon is always a good idea, plus it’s a fun way to help keep the punch chilled and it adds flavor to the drink as it melts versus watering the mixture down (like what happens with ice). I also wanted to use only light/lemony/golden ingredients to keep the drink on-theme with my gilded, glittering NYE visions. And, for the finishing magical touches, that give an especially special nod to the aforementioned fireworks and sparklers, are the ice-cubes made with edible gold and silver glitter mixed in, as well as the sliced star fruit garnishes.
And while it may sound over-the-top, I promise you that, similarly to most other punches, this champagne punch recipe really is super easy to make. Right when you’re ready to serve the drink, you basically just pour everything into a punch bowl, give a quick little stir and voila! That’s it! In less time than it takes for you to say “Happy New Year!” you’ll have your new year’s eve punch ready to go for you to sip, toast and cheers your way right on into the new year!
CHAMPAGNE COCKTAIL PUNCH
SERVES 8-10
HOW TO MAKE CHAMPAGNE COCKTAIL PUNCH
INGREDIENTS
1 375 ml bottle of gin
1 375 ml bottle of elderflower liqueur
1 cup of lemon juice
1 750ml bottle of champagne, prosecco or sparkling wine
½ liter of seltzer (use a citrus or lemon flavored one or unflavored)
3 star fruit, sliced (2 for the punch, 1 for garnishing)
1 pint lemon sorbet, scooped + more for garnish (not necessary, but can be nice)
Additional optional garnish options: sprigs of fresh rosemary or thyme, fresh berries, a sprinkle of edible glitter
directions
Fill a punch bowl (I use this one, but any larger glass bowl will work) with large glitter ice cubes (see notes below) or other ice shapes of your choice (just keep in mind that larger ice cubes/shapes do work best here). Then add in the gin and elderflower liqueur and stir.
Next, mix in the lemon juice. Then pour in the sparkling wine and seltzer water and give a quick stir. Lastly, add in the scoops of lemon sorbet and top with some of the star fruit slices.
Serve in coupe glasses and garnish with the remaining star fruit slices, extra scoops of lemon sorbet (not necessary, but can be nice) and any additional garnishes you prefer (I personally love adding a sprinkle of edible glitterr for a little extra pizazz!).
NOTES
TO MAKE AHEAD OF TIME- Yes, you can make parts of this punch up to 48 hours ahead of time. Mix together the gin, elderflower liqueur and lemon juice. Keep in an airtight container in the fridge until just before making the punch. Once you’re ready to serve the punch, fill the punch bowl with ice. Add the lemon juice mixture, stir then pour in the sparkling wine and seltzer water, and proceed with the remainder of the recipe.
TO KEEP THE PUNCH CHILLED AS LONG AS POSSIBLE- Try to have all (or as many as possible) ingredients chilled for at least 24 hours beforehand, and chill the punch bowl in the refrigerator for at least an hour before making the punch. Use larger ice cubes if possible. Also, since the punch does sit out for a bit, I recommend keeping extra ice, and even extra sorbet, in the freezer to add to the punch and/or as a garnish throughout the night to ensure that the drink stays fresh and cool to drink.
TO MAKE GLITTER ICE- CUBES- To make glitter ice cubes, simply fill an ice-cube tray of your choice with water, then sprinkle the water liberally with edible gold and/or silver glitter and place in the freezer until they’re frozen solid.
ALTERNATIVE ICE-CUBE OPTION-Another great ice cube option for this drink, and one that will keep the cocktail flavor from watering down, is to freeze lemon juice (or whatever juice you’re using) into ice cubes. Then use those in place of regular ice. Also, instead of using glitter you could also use edible flowers (chamomile would be especially perfect for this drink) or even fresh herbs (rosemary or thyme would work well for this recipe).
A TIP FOR THE SORBET- I like to pre-scoop it ahead of time. Simply allow the sorbet to soften a bit, line a baking sheet with wax paper, then scoop the sorbet, placing the sorbet balls onto the lined baking sheet. Pop into the freezer and allow them to harden (I recommend doing this at least 2 hours before making the punch, but it can be done up to 24 hours before). Not only does this make it easier when it comes time to assemble the punch, I find that the sorbet also stays frozen for longer.
FLAVOR VARIATIONS- If citrus/lemon isn’t quite your thing, it’s really quite easy to play around with the flavors of this recipe and swap out ingredients. For example, you could go in a more tropical direction and instead of lemon juice, try using pineapple juice. Then swap the lemon sorbet for a pineapple or mango one instead. Use ginger ale or ginger beer instead of the seltzer water, try vodka instead of gin and eliminate the elderflower liquor completely. Or keep everything the same, but just swap out the juice, or just swap out the flavor of the sorbet.
FOR A NON-ALCOHOLIC VERSION- use 1 bottle of Wilderton non-alcoholic spirits in place of the gin, eliminate the wildflower liquor (you could add a floral simple syrup instead) and use a sparkling grape juice or non-alcoholic bubbly of your choice in place of the prosecco or champagne.
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ITEMS + INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO MAKE THIS RECIPE
