This hot cranberry punch makes the perfect Christmas or Thanksgiving drink. Using the slow cooker to heat a medley of orange, apple, cranberry, and spices, your whole house will also be filled with the aroma of the holiday season. The presentation is absolutely beautiful and since it’s a mocktail, it’s a family favorite both kids and adults can enjoy it!
If you’ve had hot toddies in the past, you know they normally contain alcohol such as whiskey. But, today I am going to show you how to make a version the whole family can enjoy. To turn this recipe into a cranberry cocktail, you can use spiked apple cider in place of regular or add a few ounces of bourbon. Once you are finished and are looking for ways to use up the leftover cranberries, try my cranberry jello salad or make sugared cranberries.
Need more suggestions for holiday drinks? Christmas sangria is an excellent choice, loaded with fruit and warm spices. Cranberry orange mimosas and our Christmas cranberry cocktail are bright and refreshing. For the kids, consider jazzing up hot cocoa with these fun hot chocolate bombs or making our non-alcoholic Christmas punch. Phew! So many choices!
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Why You’ll Love Hot Cranberry Punch
- Made in the slow cooker, so you can set it and forget it!
- The presentation is fantastic.
- All of the holiday flavors are combined into one hot drink.
- Can be served as a mocktail or as a spiced cranberry hot toddy.
☕️ Ingredients:
- frozen orange juice concentrate – or swap for regular orange juice – we like to use concentrate because then you are using the other juices to dilute the concentrate without the added water that you would have from using orange juice.
- apple juice or apple cider
- cranberry juice – we love the tartness form a 100% cranberry juice, but you can also use a cranberry juice cocktail or a cranberry cocktail blend – in this case, you might want to adjust the sugar quantities to taste
- granulated white sugar and light brown sugar – you can also use just one or the other, I find that the brown sugar gives a little more warmth and richness to the warm punch
- cinnamon sticks and star anise – using whole spices in this cranberry punch add such a beautiful and festive visual touch.
- whole orange
- fresh cranberries or frozen cranberries
- Orange slices, whole cranberries, star anise, and cinnamon sticks for garnish
For a full list of ingredients and their measurements, 📋 please view my printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Optional Garnish:
Whole cinnamon sticks served on the side make a lovely stir stick and garnish in the glass. You can also coat the rim of the serving glass with sugar or a cinnamon sugar combo.
Substitutions and Variations
- We love serving this as a warm drink, but they can be consumed cold as well.
- To make this a cranberry hot toddy recipe, add an ounce of bourbon to the glasses once they are served versus directly into the crock pot.
- Slice whole apples to soak in the punch for some variety. The apples will absorb more of the red coloring from the cranberries though.
- For a light cranberry punch, swap light juice or diet juice for the regular juices. They often have all the flavor, but reduced calories. You can also reduce the sugar quantities, use a sugar alternative, or skip the sugar altogether!
🔪 Instructions:
PREP: Clean the oranges well and/or use organic fruit so that pesticides aren’t soaking in your punch!
Step 1: Add the orange juice concentrate, sugar, sticks of cinnamon, and star anise to the crockpot.
Step 2: Pour in the apple and cranberry juice. Add the orange slices and cranberries, then cover.
Step 3: Cook on high for 2 hours, stirring occasionally to make sure the sugars dissolve.
Pro Tip: After cooking for a few hours, the fruit and spices become saturated and discolored from the punch. Use fresh fruits and spices to garnish individual glasses when serving.
GARNISH/SERVE: For the prettiest presentation, serve in a glass jar or cup and garnish with extra fruit, star anise, and cinnamon sticks.
Recipe Tips for Hot Cranberry Drink
- If you are going to make half a batch, we still recommend using a full orange, 1 cup of cranberries, two cinnamon sticks, and star anise even if you reduce the sugar and juice.
- Remove the fruit and spices before serving. If they sit in the punch too long, the drinks will become overly spicy and the orange slices will be bitter. Garnish with fresh fruit and spices for individual servings.
Fun Fact
Did you know that cranberry is made up of 90% water? To make 1 pound, you would need 450 cranberries.
Recipe FAQs
Remove the fruit and spices once the cooking time is up. Store the strained juice in the refrigerator for up to a week in a large pitcher. Add fresh fruit, star anise, and cinnamon sticks to individual cups when you are ready to serve.
It really depends on what mixers are being used. Vodka, rum, spiced rum, bourbon, and brandy can all be mixed with cranberry juice to make a delicious drink with a few other ingredients.
More Festive Holiday Drinks
If you tried this Hot Cranberry Punch recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the 📝 comments below.
Hot Cranberry Punch
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate or 2 cups orange juice
- 8 cups apple juice or apple cider
- 8 cups cranberry juice
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1-2 star anise
- 1 whole orange cut into slices
- 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
- Orange slices whole cranberries, star anise, cinnamon sticks (for garnish)
Instructions
- Add orange juice concentrate, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon sticks and star anise to the bottom of a slow cooker.
- Add the apple juice and cranberry juice to the crock. Add orange slices and cranberries and cover with the lid.
- Cook on high for 2 hours, stirring occasionally to ensure the sugars dissolve and disperse throughout the punch.
- Serve hot.
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Notes
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