Pretty up Your Punch Bowl With This Easy Ice Ring

Sometimes the simplest ideas can make the greatest impressions. I recently made a Bundt tin ice-ring for a holiday punch bowl, and my guests were blown away by how beautiful it was. It’s not just something pretty for the holidays though, it’s also a practical and delicious way to keep your punch cold and adds some extra flavor too. I was torn between so many ideas when making my ice ring. In the end I came up with two different flavored versions – one citrussy and one Christmassy.

Christmassy ice ring | Photo by Vicky McDonald

Choose Beautiful, Colorful Ingredients

To create my ice rings, I chose a balance of colorful contrasts, textures, sizes, and flavors. See what you’d add to my list:

Christmas theme	Citrus theme
Orange slices	Lemon slices
Pear Slices	Lime slices
Pomegranate seeds	Apple slices
Cinnamon sticks	Raspberries
Fresh rosemary	Fresh mint

Citrussy ice ring | Photo by Vicky McDonald

Steps for Building Your Ice Ring

1. Before you start this project, clear a space in your freezer. In fact do it right now! This baby needs lots of room and a flat surface. Do not attempt to fit it in at the last minute or you will have a wonky looking ice-ring.
2.  Slice and prepare all of your fruit.
3. Cherry-pick out the best and prettiest fruits and leave to one side.
4. The first layer of fruit you put in your Bundt is what you present, so it’s important to get this right. Use your best slices of fruit, and arrange them as evenly as possible.
5. Use herbs in between the fruit, so they peep through, and create a nice color contrast.
6. The middle layers of fruit will not be seen, so you can use the other slices of fruit that are not as picture perfect. For these middle layers use plenty of heavy fruit like cranberries to weigh it all down.
7. Fill your Bundt tin as much as possible before putting in the water. If you have more ice than fruit, your design won’t be as visible.
8. Make sure the final layer is neat and pretty, as you may be able to see this layer too. It will also mean you can present your ice ring either way.
9. Using a jug, fill the Bundt tin with water until almost full.
10. Very gently push the fruit down with a plate or with the palm of your hand. You don’t want too large a layer of ice at the bottom, so that your fruit will be seen.
11. Carefully place your Bundt tin in the freezer and freeze overnight.
12. To remove the ice ring from the tin, place it over a bowl of boiling water for about a minute or a two. It should release easily. If it needs some further persuasion, give it another minute over the hot water.
13. At this point, I recommend turning the ice ring out onto a large plate. This way you can carefully arrange and place the ice ring in the punch bowl just when your guest arrive.
14. That’s it! Watch and smile as everyone marvels at your wonderful ice-sculpture majesty.

Photo by Vicky McDonald

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Pass the punch:

• Browse dozens of delicious punch recipes for your ice ring.

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