Cranberry Punch

Thoroughly wash the cranberries by placing them in a colander or sieve and rinsing them under warm water. Remove any twigs or spoiled berries. For preparing cranberry punch, you can even use frozen cranberries, and if they have been frozen following all the rules, there is no need to wash them or thaw them.

Remove the zest from the lemon: grate it using a grater or a special knife, as shown in the photo. Instead of lemon zest, you can use orange zest - it will be equally delicious and aromatic.

For the recipe, you will need two cups of red juice: it can be cherry, pomegranate or cranberry juice.

Transfer the juice to a saucepan, add the cranberries, lemon zest, a cinnamon stick, and star anise.

Place a saucepan on low heat, bring the contents to a boil, add sugar and cook for 2-3 minutes until the sugar is completely dissolved.

Turn off the heat and let the liquid steep under the lid for another 10 minutes.

Remove the star anise and cinnamon stick, strain the cooked berries through a sieve, discard the pulp. You will get a very concentrated aromatic juice.

Pour vodka into the juice (you can also add white rum or Cointreau liqueur) and refrigerate to cool.

Before serving, add chilled sparkling water to the drink, then pour into glasses. Optionally, place a star anise, a slice of lemon, and some fresh cranberries in each glass. You can also add ice cubes. It is better to prepare cranberry punch in advance so that it can steep and cool well in the refrigerator. If you plan to include it in the New Year's menu, then start preparing the punch on December 29-30.