Witches' Brew - Halloween Alcoholic Punch

Conjure a bubbling cauldron of Witches' Brew with this spooky punch that smokes and chills your Halloween party.

270 min Serves 12 Medium American

Our own summary of the original — the full post and photos live at gritsandpinecones.com.

This Witches' Brew is a potent Halloween punch made with pomegranate and cranberry juices, tequila, and sparkling wine, chilled with a fruit juice ice ring. For a dramatic effect, dry ice placed between nested bowls creates a spooky smoke when warm water is added. The recipe serves a crowd and is sure to impress party guests.

Ingredients

1 cup sugar

1 quart 100% pomegranate juice

3 cups tequila

1 cup fresh lemon juice

1 cup 100% cranberry juice (not cranberry juice cocktail)

1 750-ml bottle dry sparkling wine (I used Prosecco)

1 pound dry ice

Additional pomegranate or cranberry juice for the optional ice ring.

Directions

Keep all the punch components (except the sugar) chilled in the fridge until you're ready to mix.

To prepare simple syrup, combine 1 cup of sugar with 1 cup of water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat while stirring constantly. Cook for about five minutes, or until the sugar has fully dissolved and the liquid turns clear. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

In a large gallon-sized container, mix together the pomegranate juice, tequila, fresh lemon juice, and cranberry juice. Add the cooled simple syrup and stir well. Refrigerate the mixture for at least four hours.

For an optional decorative ice ring, fill an ice mold with cranberry or pomegranate juice and freeze until solid (roughly four hours). If you don't have a mold, you can use muffin tins, paper cups, or a plastic storage bowl to create a fruit juice ice block.

Just before you serve, stir in the sparkling wine and add the ice ring (if using).

To create a smoky effect, you'll need two bowls that are about the same height when nested. The smaller one holds the punch, and the larger one holds the smaller bowl with about an inch of space between them. A plastic Halloween cauldron works well as the larger bowl.

Right before serving, place the smaller bowl inside the larger one. Using tongs, drop small chunks of dry ice into the gap between the two bowls—be careful not to let any dry ice fall into the punch bowl itself. Fill the smaller bowl with the punch, then pour warm water over the dry ice.

The warm water will cause the dry ice to produce a dense smoke. Depending on the size of the dry ice pieces, the smoke can last for 10 to 30 minutes. If you have leftover dry ice, adding more warm water will restart the smoking effect.