Caribbean Milk Punch Food

CLARIFIED MILK PUNCH

Steps:

• Heat 2 1/4 cups of water to 208 degrees F. If you have an electric kettle with a temperature setting, great. If not, bring the water to a boil in a saucepan, kill the heat and count to 20. Pour the water over the teabags into a quart vessel and steep 3 minutes before removing the bags. (Do not wring out or squeeze the bags.)
• Add the sugar to the hot tea and stir to dissolve. Then add the port, rum, Allspice Dram, and lemon juice. Cool to room temperature, about 20 minutes.
• Pour the milk into a glass pitcher and then follow with the tea mixture. (Yes, it will curdle.) Park on counter for 1 hour. Do not shake, stir or molest in any way. Just let the magic happen. Oh, and make sure the tea goes into the milk, not the other way around.
• Line a large, fine-mesh sieve with a commercial-sized coffee filter (we like those made for 1.5-gallon machines) and strain the mixture into a wide, 4-quart container. Once completely filtered, typically about 1 hour, transfer to a quart jar or pitcher and chill to serve. (See Cook's Note.)
• Store tightly sealed in the refrigerator for up to 2 months.
• Heat a heavy skillet over low heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Toast the allspice berries until fragrant, about 1 minute, then roughly crush.
• Combine the rum and crushed allspice berries in a quart-sized glass jar, seal the lid tightly and give it a good shake. Steep for 10 days.
• Strain the allspice-infused rum through a fine-mesh sieve into a small saucepan and add the sugar. Heat over low, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is fully dissolved, about 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature before storing in a glass jar or bottle.
• Note: Any overproof rum will work here, meaning any rum over 50 percent ABV. But navy-strength rum, typically bottled at 57 percent ABV, is my favorite. Just remember: The higher the ABV of the rum, the higher the ABV of your resulting dram.

CARIBBEAN CRUISE PUNCH

Steps:

• 8 oz. pomegranate juice (to soften the sweetness of the liquor and the pineapple)
• Combine all ingredients and chill well. Float four orange slices in punch bowl as a garnish. Serve over ice.