Crockpot Christmas punch (slightly based on Mexican ponche navideño)
Crockpot Christmas punch (slightly based on Mexican ponche navideño)
by Mouse-r4t
3 Comments
Mouse-r4t
Here are the ingredients I used:
• A generous handful of dried hibiscus flowers (I put these into 4 tea filter bags)
• half an apple
• 1 orange
• a generous of scoop of pear, peach, and pineapple from a canned mix
• a small handful of prunes
• a small handful of walnuts
• a block of piloncillo
• 4 cinnamon sticks
• a tiny handful of cloves
• a tiny handful of cardamom seeds
• 2 spoonfuls of tamarind pulp
• enough water to fill the crockpot
Steps:
1) Rinse the dried hibiscus flowers, then put them into filter bags. Tie the ends so the flowers don’t come out. Place them in the crockpot.
2) Cut fruit into chunks/slices (if necessary), then put it all in the crockpot.
3) Add the rest of the dry ingredients.
4) Cover with water and cook on high for 2-4 hours, or on low for longer.
Notes:
The amount of hibiscus flowers can vary. They will make your drink very dark and pungent the more you use, so feel free to use less. You can let them steep in the water with the rest of the ingredients, or you can make an infusion separately and then pour that into the crockpot on top of everything else.
If you’re not a big fan of hibiscus, you can substitute apple juice/cider, or do half quantities of both. Pear juice/cider would probably also work well.
Fresh fruits work best, but I used a canned mixture for some of them because it was easier for me to get where I am.
Piloncillo is used in Mexican recipes for ponche navideño. I had some that I brought from the US, but other types of brown sugar would work. The typical quantity, when using piloncillo, is one cone or block. If you are using loose brown sugar, add it slowly/to taste.
Cinnamon is key, but you can play around with other spice combinations to see what you like best. Cardamom isn’t traditional, but I like to use it here! Typically, spices like what you’d find in gingerbread or chai mixes work best for this recipe.
I have a brick of tamarind pulp that has lasted for ages. You can also use fresh tamarind if you can find it. If using fresh, remove the outer shell of the pods, and drop the inner fruit into the crockpot. The heat will soften the fruit until it’s practically melted. Fresh tamarind has seeds, so you have to watch out for them when you’re drinking.
If you don’t want to serve or consume a drink with “chunks”, you can strain the punch before putting it in a pitcher or cup. If you don’t strain it, no worries! The cooked fruit can be nice to eat. Just don’t eat any of the whole spices!
And most importantly: Christmas punch is GREAT with some kind of alcohol added. Wine, tequila, whiskey, rum…usually darker liquors work better than clear ones!
CloudierDuke
Looks amazing and refreshing! 😋
Bibi1024
Nice! I love ponche! Especially when you spike the drink. Only when it’s in the cup because the kids drink the ponche as well. We also add caña to ours along with guava and other things but yours looks very good 😋
3 Comments
Here are the ingredients I used:
• A generous handful of dried hibiscus flowers (I put these into 4 tea filter bags)
• half an apple
• 1 orange
• a generous of scoop of pear, peach, and pineapple from a canned mix
• a small handful of prunes
• a small handful of walnuts
• a block of piloncillo
• 4 cinnamon sticks
• a tiny handful of cloves
• a tiny handful of cardamom seeds
• 2 spoonfuls of tamarind pulp
• enough water to fill the crockpot
Steps:
1) Rinse the dried hibiscus flowers, then put them into filter bags. Tie the ends so the flowers don’t come out. Place them in the crockpot.
2) Cut fruit into chunks/slices (if necessary), then put it all in the crockpot.
3) Add the rest of the dry ingredients.
4) Cover with water and cook on high for 2-4 hours, or on low for longer.
Notes:
The amount of hibiscus flowers can vary. They will make your drink very dark and pungent the more you use, so feel free to use less. You can let them steep in the water with the rest of the ingredients, or you can make an infusion separately and then pour that into the crockpot on top of everything else.
If you’re not a big fan of hibiscus, you can substitute apple juice/cider, or do half quantities of both. Pear juice/cider would probably also work well.
Fresh fruits work best, but I used a canned mixture for some of them because it was easier for me to get where I am.
Piloncillo is used in Mexican recipes for ponche navideño. I had some that I brought from the US, but other types of brown sugar would work. The typical quantity, when using piloncillo, is one cone or block. If you are using loose brown sugar, add it slowly/to taste.
Cinnamon is key, but you can play around with other spice combinations to see what you like best. Cardamom isn’t traditional, but I like to use it here! Typically, spices like what you’d find in gingerbread or chai mixes work best for this recipe.
I have a brick of tamarind pulp that has lasted for ages. You can also use fresh tamarind if you can find it. If using fresh, remove the outer shell of the pods, and drop the inner fruit into the crockpot. The heat will soften the fruit until it’s practically melted. Fresh tamarind has seeds, so you have to watch out for them when you’re drinking.
If you don’t want to serve or consume a drink with “chunks”, you can strain the punch before putting it in a pitcher or cup. If you don’t strain it, no worries! The cooked fruit can be nice to eat. Just don’t eat any of the whole spices!
And most importantly: Christmas punch is GREAT with some kind of alcohol added. Wine, tequila, whiskey, rum…usually darker liquors work better than clear ones!
Looks amazing and refreshing! 😋
Nice! I love ponche! Especially when you spike the drink. Only when it’s in the cup because the kids drink the ponche as well. We also add caña to ours along with guava and other things but yours looks very good 😋