21 Easy Non-Alcoholic Cocktails – Punch and Cup

Making non-alcoholic cocktails is easy, refreshing, and fun, suitable for any time of the day. All of them can be made or served as punches or individually; one only has to adjust the proportions. Some are called “Cups “and “Punches,” but there are few differences between them. All that means is they are suitable for large parties.

Cups and Punches are alcohol-based drinks and one of the oldest drink families, dating back hundreds of years. Cups are mostly made with wine or ale and a combination of juices, fruits, sweeteners, and spices.

In his book from 1869, Cooling Cups and Dainty Drinks – William Terrington dedicated 24 pages to Cups; drinks such as Claret Cup and Pimm’s Cup originated around that time.

Punches are very similar in that they also use spices, sweeteners, and citrus and are suitable for large gatherings. They slightly differ in using tea or milk instead of water and prefer a stronger base spirit.

The first discovered punch recipe (“aqua vitae, rosewater, citrus juice, and sugar “) was recorded by the German adventurer Johan Albrecht de Mandelslo when visiting 1638 one of the English East India Company’s factories in India. That was well before the wide acceptance of the cocktail^ in the 1800s.

In some non-alcoholic recipes here, if one is to add wine or spirits, we will make old-time favourites, such as Cups and Punches.

Punch Recipes

Anise Hot Punch

For 5 ppl
3 oz honey
3 oz hot milk
2 cups hot tea
ground anise to taste
Blend all ingredients and leave for 5-10 minutes at room temperature. Serve in highball cups.

Berry Punch

For 2 ppl
1 cup strawberry juice
1 cup water
1/2 oz lemon
1/2 oz orange
peel 1/2 orange
sugar
Boil the water with the orange peel for 4-5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and sweeten to taste. Bring to the boil once more and strain. Serve immediately or refrigerate for later use.
Note: Raspberry juice can be used in place of strawberry juice.

Cranberry Punch

For 2 ppl
1 cup blueberry juice
1 cup water
2 tablespoons raspberry syrup
1 clove
a pinch of cinnamon
2 slices of lemon
Boil the water with the spices. Add the juice and raspberry syrup. Heat again (without boiling) and serve with one slice of lemon.

Cuban Tea Punch

4 oz tea
2 cups boiling water
1 cup orange juice
1 cup blueberry juice
1 oz lemon juice,
1/4 cup diced pineapple
a pinch of crushed cloves

Cover the cloves with boiling water and infuse them for 4 minutes. Stir, filter, and pour into a small pot.
Add the fruit juices, diced pineapple, and sugar to taste. Heat the mixture to boil – stop when you see the first bubbles in the water and serve.

Elderberry Punch

For 2 ppl
1 cup elderberry juice
1 cup of water
1 oz lemon
1 clove
1 cinnamon stick
1 1/2 oz of cherry or raisin juice
Heat all the ingredients to boiling, pour into glasses, and place one slice of lemon on top.
To serve cold, chill, and pour over ice.

Hawaiian punch

1 L of pineapple juice
1/2 L of lemonade
1 cup of mixed banana, pineapple, tangerine, and oranges
ice cubes made from frozen lemonade or
If made in a punch bowl, one large block is made from frozen lemonade.
Use cold juice and lemonade. Mix in a large jug and add the fruits. Stir and pour ice into highball glasses.
If you are making a punch, double the ingredients, pour them into a large container and add a large ice block.

Hot Apple Punch

1 cup apple juice
1/2 oz lemon juice,
1 cinnamon stick
2 cloves
sugar to taste
Heat all ingredients (except cinnamon) in a small, enamelled dish. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Pour warm into a teacup and stir with the cinnamon stick.

Hot Raspberry Punch

For 5 ppl
3 oz lemon juice
2 oz raspberry syrup
2 oz vanilla syrup^
1/2 litre hot strong tea
Mix all ingredients well and leave room temperature for 5-10 minutes. Serve in highball cups.

Hot Orange Punch

For 5 ppl
5 oz of orange juice
3 oz of sugar syrup
2 cups of hot tea
lemon slices
Blend the ingredients well and let them stand at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. Serve in highball cups with lemon slices on the edge.

Orange Punch

8 cups cold orange juice
1 L of cold lemonade
1 cup of chopped fruit (finely chopped oranges, tangerines, apples, bananas, kiwis, etc.)
mint leaves – for garnish
ice
Mix orange juice and lemonade in a large bowl. Add the fruits and place a large ice block in the bowl.
If served individually, pour over an ice-filled glass and garnish with mint.

Breakfast Fruit Punch

4 cups of fruit juice of choice
1 cup of water
2 eggs
1/2 lemon sliced
2 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
peel of 1/2 orange,
sugar or honey
Mix the fruit juice and water. Add sugar, lemon, cloves, and cinnamon, and cut into thin slices. Heat the mixture to 50 degrees. Remove from the heat and add the well-beaten eggs, stirring constantly. Serve hot.

Tea Punch

3 cups grape juice
1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
2 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
1 sliced lemon
Boil the water with added sugar, cloves, and cinnamon. Add the grape juice and heat it again to boil. Remove from the heat, remove the spices, and add the sliced lemon. Serve hot.

Cup Recipes

Orange Grapefruit Cup

2 cups grapefruit juice
2 cups fresh orange juice
1 cup lemon juice
1 1/2 cups finely chopped fresh fruit of choice
2 tablespoons powdered sugar, crushed ice
2 L cold water
Place the fruit in a large glass, add the sugar and refrigerate. Pour the cold water into a large jug, add the juices and mix.
Add ice in tall cups, place the fruits in the cups, and pour over the prepared juice mixture.

Orange-Pineapple Cup

4 cups pineapple juice
1 cup orange juice
2 oz lemons
lemon and orange peel
sparkling water
sugar is optional, depending on the sweetness of the juices
crushed ice
Mix the juices. The peel of lemons and oranges is cut into pieces, boiled for 5 minutes in 1 cup of water, then cooled and added to the juices.
Add sugar, if needed, and mix. Pour the mixture into highball glasses filled with crushed ice. Garnish with orange and pineapple.
 

Mint Lemonade Cup

3 cups finely chopped mint leaves
2 oz lemon juice
peel 2 lemons
5 tablespoons sugar
a pinch of ginger – optional
4 bottles of lemonade
lemon slices and whole mint leaves for decoration
ice
Boil the lemon peel for 5 minutes in 2 cups of water, strain it, and add the sugar and lemon juice.
Pour the mixture over the chopped mint leaves in a large jug. Let it infuse for 12 hours. Add lemonade and a pinch of ginger. 
Serve in tall glasses with ice decorated with pieces of lemon and mint leaves.
Note: Pour everything in a bowl over a large block of ice for larger parties.

Mocktails

Coke, Curry, Pineapple – Indian Car

1 bottle of Coca-Cola
2 tablespoons chopped plums or pineapple
a pinch of curry
a few ice cubes,
a few drops of lemon juice
Fill a highball glass halfway with ice, add the fruit and lemon juice, and stir. Top up with Coca-Cola, mix lightly, and sprinkle with curry on top.

Peach and Orange

1 cup peach juice
1 cup orange juice
1cup lemon juice
4 lemon slices
Dilute the lemon juice with 5 oz water and freeze it in ice cube moulds. Put a few ice cubes in a glass.
Pour over the premixed orange and peach juice. Stir and garnish with peach slice and lemon wedge.

Pineapple Orange

8 oz pineapple juice
1 1/2 oz orange juice
1/2 oz lemon juice
1 oz milk chilled milk
few ice cubes
1 tbsp honey or sugar – optional
Blend everything with ice and pour into a chilled cocktail glass.
Note: Sugar is optional, depending on the sugar content of the juices.

Strawberry Blackcurrant

1/2 cup strawberries
1/2 cup blackcurrants*
2 cups mineral water
4 tablespoons honey
crushed ice

Make puree by blending fruits and honey well and straining. Add water and chill it.
Pour over crushed ice into a tall glass. Garnish with berries.
Note: Instead of blackcurrants – use fruits of your choice.
If using Sparkling water, pour it over the puree and crushed ice. Skip previous step two.

Strawberry Milkshake

2 cups strawberry syrup
1 scoop of strawberry ice cream
1 cup cold milk
few ice cubes – optional
Blend everything and pour it into a chilled glass.