Champagne Fruit Punch

Two weeks. The countdown is physical — I feel it in my body, the way you feel a holiday approaching, the way the kitchen knows when Sunday is coming because the hands start reaching for the flour before the mind decides. Two weeks until I am married. Two weeks until "Tamika Washington" is legally, formally, paperwork-officially the name I share with Derek, which is the same last name as Terrell, which God arranged as either a cosmic joke or a reminder that names are just words and love is what fills them.

The kids are excited. Even Isaiah, who expresses excitement by being slightly less quiet than usual, which is a seismographic reading of joy that only the people closest to him can detect. He has been practicing the collard greens. He made them Thursday and served them to the family for dinner and the greens were GOOD — better than good, they were right, the turkey necks rendering their smoke into the broth, the vinegar sharp, the Folgers-can seasoning perfect. Curtis came for Saturday dinner (outdoors, distanced, the pandemic compromise) and ate Isaiah's greens and said, "These are right." He said it to Isaiah. Directly. Curtis Jackson told a thirteen-year-old boy who is not his blood that his collard greens were "right," and "right" from Curtis is Mama's "perfect" is Miss Ernestine's "I suppose it'll do" is the Jackson standard of excellence applied to a Mitchell boy and the standards don't care about last names. The standards care about the greens. The greens were right.

Made the wedding grocery list. Three pages. The final menu: Friday rehearsal dinner — fried chicken (me), rice and peas (me, Claudette's recipe), collard greens (Isaiah), cornbread (Jasmine), Marcus's salsa and chips, cobbler (me). Saturday brunch — eggs, fruit, pastries. The list is long. The budget is tight. The food will be extraordinary because the food is the family and the family is extraordinary. Three pages. Six cooks. One wedding. Bring it.

When I wrote “beverages” at the top of page three of that grocery list, I paused — because the food is the family, yes, but the toast is the moment, and I wanted something on that Saturday brunch table that felt as joyful and layered as everything we’ve built. A punch bowl big enough for six cooks, a houseful of kids, and whatever beautiful blended thing this family is becoming felt exactly right. This Champagne Fruit Punch is it — festive without fuss, scalable for a crowd, and the kind of thing you set on the table and let people pour for themselves while the collard greens finish and the cornbread cools.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes | Total Time: 10 minutes | Servings: 20

Ingredients

2 bottles (750 ml each) champagne or dry sparkling wine, chilled
1 can (46 oz) pineapple juice, chilled
1 can (12 oz) frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
1 liter ginger ale or lemon-lime soda, chilled
1 cup orange juice, chilled
1 pint raspberry or strawberry sherbet
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries, for garnish
1 orange, thinly sliced, for garnish
Ice ring or block of ice (optional, to keep punch cold)

Instructions

Chill everything. Make sure all liquid ingredients are thoroughly chilled before assembling — this keeps the punch cold longer and preserves the champagne’s fizz.
Combine the base. In a large punch bowl, stir together the pineapple juice, lemonade concentrate, and orange juice until the concentrate is fully dissolved.
Add the soda. Gently pour in the ginger ale, stirring minimally to preserve the carbonation.
Add the champagne. Just before serving, pour in both bottles of champagne. Tilt the bottle along the edge of the bowl as you pour to minimize foam loss.
Scoop the sherbet. Add scoops of raspberry or strawberry sherbet to the punch bowl — it will float and slowly melt, adding creaminess and sweetness as guests serve themselves.
Garnish and serve. Float the orange slices and raspberries on top. Add an ice ring if using. Ladle into punch cups or glasses and serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Champagne Fruit Punch — A Toast to Three Pages, Six Cooks, and One Wedding