While you’d be forgiven for thinking this national unofficial holiday is dedicated to something you do in a boxing ring or a stationery tool you use to make holes in things, Punch Day on September 20 is actually all about the delicious, fruit-filled drink known as punch.
You may think of it as mainly an American thing, but actually it hit England first. Sailors brought the drink (and the concept) back from India with them, which was originally made with 5 ingredients; alcohol, sugar, lemon, spices and water. The Persian word ‘Panj’ (meaning ‘five’ and referring to the number of ingredients) was slowly changed to ‘Punch’ and the popularity of the drink grew and grew until it became what it is today.
And even from way back in the early 17th century, the ingredients haven’t actually changed that much. We’ve pretty much ditched the spices but it’s still basically made up of alcohol, sugar (in the form of sugary fizzy drinks) and fruit (with more options available than just lemon).
With the option to easily make this shareable beverage alcoholic or non-alcoholic, it’s a popular drink for parties, weddings, BBQs and other gatherings.
One of our favourite recipes is made by combining 500ml of vodka, 4 litres of cherryade, 5 litres of summer fruit juice, 5 litres of orange juice, 1 litre of pineapple juice, 5 sliced lemons and loads of ice. That recipe creates a massive 50 servings though so unless you have 50 friends coming over (or fewer, very thirsty, ones) then you can easily scale down the recipe to cater for a few less. And if you’re going tee-total or trying to cater to children too, then the fruit punch tastes just as great without the alcohol.
Of course, it’s no good making an amazing punch if you have nowhere to put it! There’s loads of great punch bowls out there whether you want a glass one with attached teacups or more of a statement metal centre piece. Check out these great options on the Snizl feed and bag yourself one in time to celebrate punch day in style.