3 Punch recipes for parties

There is just something about a beautiful bowl filled with colorful punch that adds pizzazz to any party. These three punch recipes will keep your guests coming back for more so make extra!

Christmas snowball punch

This bright red punch with a thick white froth is beautiful in the midst of your holiday buffet.

Yield: 100 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 bottles of cran-raspberry juice
• 2 cups of seedless raspberry jam or preserves
• 4 bottles of ginger ale or lemon-lime soda
• 2 gallons of vanilla ice cream

Directions:

1. Combine the cran-raspberry juice, jam and soda in a punch bowl.
2. Scoop 1 gallon of the ice cream into the punch and stir until it makes a frothy layer on top.
3. You may need to wait for up to 15 minutes for the red layer to separate from the frothy layer.
4. Add the remaining scoops of ice cream .

Banana Punch

This sweet, sparkly punch is full of tropical flavor.

Yield: About 200 servings

Ingredients:

• 4 ripe bananas
• 2 cups of sugar
• 3 cups of water
• 1 1/2 quarts of pineapple juice
• 2 cans of orange juice concentrate
• 2 cans of lemonade concentrate
• 2 cups of water
• 2 bottles of ginger ale

Directions:

1. Let the frozen concentrates stand on the counter until they are slushy but not totally thawed.
2. Combine the bananas, sugar and 3 cups of water in a blender and blend until smooth.
3. Pour the mixture into a large bowl and add the pineapple juice.
4. Mix in the concentrates and the 2 cups of water.
5. Freeze this mixture until it is solid. It's best if you freeze it in 4 covered plastic pitchers.
6. Remove from the freezer 3 hours before serving and allow it to get slushy.
7. Use one pitcher of slush to one liter of ginger ale in the punchbowl.
8. For a spiked version add 2 cups of golden rum with each liter of ginger ale.

Dreamsicle Punch

This punch will remind you of those frozen orange and vanilla pops you loved as a kid.

Yield: 60 servings

Ingredients:

• 1/2 gallon of orange sherbet
• 6-ounces of frozen orange juice concentrate
• 1 liter of ginger ale
• 1 liter of cream soda

Directions:

1. Add the orange juice concentrate and sherbet to a punch bowl and let it thaw for about ten minutes.
2. Stir in the ginger ale and cream soda.
3. Add 1 bottle of orange liqueur for a spiked version.

• Mix as many of the ingredients a couple of hours ahead of time as you can to let the flavor mature.
• Don't add sparkling ingredients to your punch until just before serving — it loses its fizz within an hour or two.
• Punch is usually served in small, 4-ounce glasses.
• If you will be using ice in the punch freeze the water in large molds. An ice ring or giant ice cube won't melt as fast and will keep the punch from getting diluted.

More punch recipes and ideas

Hot red velvet cocoa and whipped cream cheese frosting
Rummy chocolate affogato
Wild hibiscus champagne jelly cocktail

Photo credit: Marye Audet