Mary Beth Johnson is a writer based in Atlanta, GA. She is currently writing her first book in between school drop off and laundry piles.

She can be found every day on Instagram and at the local coffee shop.

Harvest Apple Cider Punch

Drink to cooler weather with this fizzy, kid-friendly Harvest Apple Cider Punch. Infused with oranges, apple slices, pomegranates and honey cinnamon roasted pears, you’ll get the full spectrum of fall flavors in one sip.

Oh, harvest apple cider punch. What a walk down memory lane. This drink took me right back to my grandmother’s crystal punch bowl at Thanksgiving, complete with an ice ring and a silver plated ladle. I’m not sure if punch at every special occasion was specifically located to my east coast upbringing, or everyone was doing this in the 1990’s. But where I come from, punch is a staple at every gathering. We had punch at church ladies luncheons, baby showers, wedding showers, graduation parties, you name it.

If it was a party, we had punch.

Punch In the Past

The punch I remember always had a tube of frozen concentrate and dollops of ice cream. As a kid, I would park myself near the punch table at a party and go back for seconds and thirds if I could drink fast enough. Most of the time the punch would be gone and I would have to wait for the next celebration to get my hands on some again. There was no La Croix when I was little and I don’t remember anyone putting fresh fruit in drinks at the time. The nineties brought us the phase of frozen everything. And jello. Lots and lots of jello.

Punch In the Present

While jello molds may be hard to come by these days, punch is in still very much in style. Thank goodness. One glance around Pinterest and you’ll see the art of a good holiday punch is not dead. If you’re embracing colder weather check out this complete list of holiday drinks, including eggnog! If you want a touch of summer, go check out Casey’s Pink Cloud Punch HERE and this summer punch for warmer weather.

Harvest Apple Cider Punch

With this harvest apple cider punch, I made things as fresh as I possibly could. Pears, apples, and pomegranates are all in season right now, as well as many of the heartier fresh herbs, like rosemary. I decided to make the pears the star of this show. I split them in half, drizzled with honey, sprinkled with cinnamon, and roasted for about 20-30 minutes in the oven. What began as an experiment ended up completing the entire drink. The house instantly filled with the scent of spices and warm fruit – is there anything better? After the pears cooled, I removed the pits and the skin and then blended them in my Ninja bullet. This puree held the bulk of the flavors in this harvest apple cider punch.

If you want to get fancy, you can soak the edges of your glasses in some pear juice and then dip the wet rims into coconut or brown sugar. Garnish the drinks with a sprig of fresh rosemary, cinnamon sticks, and fresh pomegranate seeds. We also like to use this silicone ice tray when we’re making fancy drinks. It consistently churns out perfectly square ice cubes and because the container is flexible the cubes don’t crack. Sitting in pretty glasses of harvest apple cider punch, the cubes look gorgeous.

Harvest Apple Cider Punch

December 5, 2019

by Casey Wiegand

Category Holidays Recipes

Persons

15

Serving Size

1 drink

Notes

Recipe adapted from Eat Yourself Skinny and Cotter Crunch.

Ingredients

• 1 gallon apple cider
• 24 oz ginger ale
• 1 (750 ml) bottle sparkling cider
• 6 pears
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1/8 tsp cinnamon
• Pinch of nutmeg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds or cranberries
• 2 honeycrisp apples, sliced and de-seeded
• 2 oranges, sliced
• 6 or 7 cinnamon sticks
• Sprigs of fresh herbs for garnishing (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400F and line baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Slice the pears in halves or quarters. Remove the stems and arrange face up on parchment paper.
3. Drizzle the tops of the pears with the 2 tbsps honey and sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg.
4. Place pears in oven for about 20-25 minutes. Pears should be soft, golden, and glazy when done. (If you're using larger pears it may take longer.)
5. Remove from oven. Once cooled, scoop out the seeds of the pears.
6. Place your honey roasted pears in a blender or food processor with vanilla and 2 tbsp juice or water. Blend until puréed.
7. Add puréed pears to a large pitcher or glass serving bowl. Let chill before serving.
8. Just before you're ready to serve combine the pear purée, apple cider, sparkling apple cider, and ginger ale in a large punch bowl. Mix well.
9. Add apple slices, orange slices, pomegranates or cranberries, and cinnamon sticks.
10. Coat the rims of the glasses in pear juice and dip in brown sugar or coconut sugar for a festive finish.
11. Garnish the glasses with a sprig of fresh thyme or rosemary, if desired. Enjoy!!!!

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https://thewiegands.com/2019/12/fall-harvest-apple-cider-punch.html