Eerie Witch's Brew

This Halloween punch is equal parts spooky spectacle and genuinely good drink. Cranberry juice, apple concentrate, limeade, and ginger ale create a tart, fruity, fizzy base, while candied ginger simmered in cranberry juice adds a warm, spicy bite that keeps it from being just another sweet party punch.

The creepy factor comes from the garnishes. Whole seedless grapes float around like eyeballs, and thin strips of orange peel peeled to look like worms curl through the deep red liquid. A chunk of dry ice dropped into the bowl creates a smoking, bubbling cauldron effect that lasts about 30 minutes.

The cranberry-ginger mixture needs at least 4 hours to chill and infuse, so plan ahead. That steeping time is what gives the punch its depth of flavor.

Kitchen Tips

• Dry ice safety is critical. Never touch dry ice with bare hands. Use tongs. Never put small pieces in individual cups. Only use one large piece in the punch bowl where it can be seen and avoided.
• Pare only the colored part of the orange peel, not the white pith. Pith is bitter and will cloud the punch’s flavor.
• Add the ginger ale right before serving. It goes flat fast, and flat ginger ale turns this into fruit juice.
• Use green grapes for the creepiest “eyeball” effect. Red grapes disappear in the cranberry-colored punch.

Variations

• Adult version: Add a bottle of white rum or vodka to the mix for a spiked Halloween punch that still smokes and swirls.
• Frozen hand: Fill a latex glove with water, freeze it, and float the frozen hand in the punch instead of (or alongside) the dry ice.
• Blood orange: Use blood orange juice instead of regular orange for an even deeper red color and a more complex citrus flavor.