Cranberry Punch

Many of my recipes come with a funny story, but I think this one may be the strangest tale yet.

My folks used to make this punch often, and I didn’t think anything was unusual about it. I just knew it tasted good and was a cheery color for any holiday gathering.

Many years ago, as a Navy wife, I was putting on a “wetting down” party. I made this punch without a second thought.

Because we were active in our local church, as well as involved with the Navy officers and their families, there were two distinct groups that came to the party. One of these groups was made up of teetotalers (I’ll let you guess which one), and the other group was made up of people who had come to really “party.”

We had a long living area so we put a big bowl of this punch at each end of the room. As the military folks came in, their first question was “Which one has the booze?”

Well, neither one did, but we pointed out one of them and said, “That one.”

Needless to say, that particular bowl of punch had to be refilled over and over throughout the evening. Those who were drinking out of that one grew happier and happier, not realizing that it was “straight” punch.

This punch is so simple and quick to make that I’m almost embarrassed to put it here as a recipe, but here goes.

Recipe: Use equal parts of cranberry juice, 7-Up, and apple juice. Pour together in a big punch bowl, and add plenty of ice. That’s all there is to it!

Serve it up tomorrow night for your New Years’ Eve party. I won’t tell, if you won’t!

By the way, Sonia, another Big Island Foodie who writes “Soniatasteshawaii,” made the cranberry bread I posted last Wednesday and included it on her blog. Please check it out.

Hau`oli Makahiki Hou! (Happy New Year!)