Why does it always feel like holidays sneak up on us? Even though we have been working from home for almost 4 months (Seriously, go away COVID-19!), it still feels like the 4th of July came out of nowhere! Luckily, I have an amazing Patriotic Punch recipe that will add a quick red, white, and blue flair to our celebration–and hopefully, yours!
A few years ago, I discovered a variation of this recipe on Pinterest. At the time, we couldn’t find the exact ingredients used in the recipe, so we purchased cranberry juice, Gatorade, and Powerade. I would have never thought to mix these 3 ingredients together, but they taste great!
Patriotic Punch Ingredients
You will need 3 drinks: one red, one white, and one blue. The sugar content of the drinks is what forms the layers, with the highest sugar content going on the bottom and the lowest on top. We recommend:
- Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice Cocktail (27g sugar, Red Layer, Bottom)
- Gatorade Glacier Cherry (21g sugar, White Layer, Top)
- Powerade Zero Sugar Mixed Berry (0g sugar, Blue Layer, Top)
- Ice
If you’re watching your sugar or caloric intake, keep in mind that these sugar values are for 8oz (cranberry juice) and 12 oz (Gatorade) servings. If you use a 16 oz. glass filled with ice, you’re likely only having 4 oz of each drink, which would be only 20.5g sugar and 77 calories. You can also control your sugar intake by making the higher sugar layers smaller.
Instructions
- Choose your favorite clear glass. Depending on your style, you might consider using a mason jar, hurricane glass, or tall tumbler.
- Fill your glass with ice.
- Slightly tip your glass and pour the cranberry juice until about 1/3 of the glass is filled.
- Slowly pour the Gatorade over the ice, filling the next 1/3 of the glass. Make sure that you don’t pour it directly on the cranberry juice as this will blur the layers. If you have a funnel, put the tip directly on top of an ice cube and pour. If you don’t have a funnel, try to find a big chunk of ice to pour it over.
- Slowly pour the Powerade over the ice to fill the final 1/3 of the glass and create the final layer.
- Serve and enjoy!
It takes less than a minute to pour the layers and they look so awesome–It’s like a mini science experiment! The drink will taste great even if the layers are blurred, so don’t fret!
Our family looks forward to this Patriotic Punch every year. I hope it becomes a favorite tradition for you, too!
If you make Patriotic Punch, let us know! Leave a comment or post a photo and tag us on Instagram: #dineanddigs
I made this but used fruit punch on the bottom. I couldn’t get my layers just right for some reason but yours looks awesome! I’ll have to try it with cranberry juice.
Hi Leah! Thanks for commenting! I found that positioning a funnel over an ice cube helped me with the layers. Also, it’s important to pour the juice out really slowly—which, I’ll admit, is tough for me because I’m rather impatient!
This looks amazing! I might try to make it this weekend! Hope the layers will look as great as yours! 🤗
Thanks for commenting, Natalie! Let me know how it turns out! It is such a pretty drink for summer.