Cranberries are an easy and festive way to dress up Champagne. Nothing truly says celebration like hearing that cork pop, seeing the bubbles flow into a flute, and feeling those bubbles on your palate! I always serve my guests on Christmas and around this time of year this cranberry champagne cocktail. This an elegant cocktail and perfect for holiday parties with it's pretty red color. It is very easy to make and is a wonderful choice to serve to your guests when they arrive. The tangy cranberry syrup takes the place of a bitter champagne taste. If you make extra syrup, save it. It is wonderful over vanilla ice cream or fruit. This is the recipe:
CRANBERRY-CHAMPAGNE COCKTAIL:
serves about 8
Cranberry Syrup Ingredients:
3/4 cup of sugar
1 cup cranberry juice
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 bag (12 oz) fresh cranberries
- champange
Garnish with fresh blackberries
DIRECTIONS
Combine sugar, cranberry juice and peppercorns in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Add the cranberries and simmer for 5 minutes.
Remove from heat and strain through a fine mesh sieve, pressing against the cranberries to extract all the liquid.
Add 2 tablespoons of cranberry syrup to a Champagne flute and top with Champagne. Note, you can also use Prosecco for this cocktail.
Remember that with any Champagne cocktail to mix all of the ingredients then add the champagne just before serving to ensure the freshest bubbly!
Your guests will love watching the blackberries dance in the glass.
Enjoy and happy holidays!
Darien resident Janine Vairo is the founder of PartyStyle Box. She can be reached at partystylebox@gmail.com and at www.partystylebox.com.
