CHRISTMAS CRANBERRY PUNCH

To celebrate the season Naomi Blackburn of Pub N’ Grub Food Forum has concocked some wonderful holiday drinks- perfect for the annual Book Club Party, or a casual get together with friends. Stay tuned and discover how to make everything from a Mistletoe Martini to the Christmas-y Cranberry Punch she is sharing here today. For even more fabulous food and drink recipes, visit Naomi’s blog at http://thepubandgrubforum.blogspot.com

CHRISTMAS CRANBERRY PUNCH

Adapted: Creative Culinary
I had stumbled upon a recipe for a Christmas gin drink on Pinterest and thought it looked interesting. Now, we are not huge gin drinkers in the Blackburn house so when I made the drink, the gin flavoring was overpowering to me, but I knew that it had potential if I adjusted the flavorings a bit. I set off on Thanksgiving day to see what I could do. My family thought this was definitely a winner!
So, here we go!:
Ingredients:
Cranberry Simple Syrup 3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup water

1 cup fresh cranberries

Drink

1 lemon, cut into wedges

1/2 orange, cut into slices

1 1/2 cups HIGH QUALITY dry gin, such as Bombay Sapphire, Beefeater or Tangueray

4 cups chilled Ginger Ale

Directions:

1) In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine syrup and water and stir until sugar is dissolved. Add cranberries and stir constantly until berries start to burst. I think mine took about 7 minutes to get them to where I wanted. Set aside.

2) In a pitcher or a punch bowl, muddle the lemon and orange. Add the gin and muddle a bit more. Add the Cranberry Simple Syrup and stir.

3) Add the Ginger Ale and ice. Stir and serve immediately. Be sure to add some of the fruits and garnish with additional lemon or orange slices. It really adds to the prettiness and flavoring!