Guava fruit (in Spanish, guayaba) comes in different flavors and colors, and its leaf, in particular, has many traditional medicinal uses.

So, today, the weather finally turned cool and my bones are already asking for warmth! The abundance of guavas in our backyard and our friends’ farms provides a key ingredient in the most exciting drink to warm up to—Ponche! The traditional recipes are delicious and complex—something to plan ahead for holiday parties. But, in just a little while, you can make this warm, sweet, aromatic drink that people young and old enjoy. You can keep it simple, or get fancy with it and experiment! Here’s a little recipe to get you started:

Simple Guava Punch

Ingredients:

5 guavas

4 cinnamon sticks

1 small piloncillo or 1/4 cup brown sugar (plus a tsp molasses, if you have it around) Note: While this ingredient is essential to the traditional versions of ponche, for those of us working to reduce the amount of sugar in our diets (Too many diabetic elders in my family for me to feel good drinking super sweet beverages anymore!)—I’ve made this without the added sugar or piloncillo, or with half the sugar, and since that’s the only version my kids have around at any given moment, they love them all!

Additional options to experiment with—oranges, apples, pears, raisins, prunes, hibiscus, tamarind, clove, tejocote…(You can add any, all or none of these!)

Instructions:

Slice up guavas (and other fruit you might want to add) as thin as possible and put in a pot with 2 cinnamon sticks, 1 liter (that’s about 4 1/4 cups) water, and any other ingredients you’re trying out including the piloncillo or sugar.

Cover, bring to a boil and immediately reduce the heat to simmer for at least 20 minutes.

Strain and serve hot. Makes about 4 cups.

Final tip—if you make this at night and let it sit overnight in the covered pot, it will taste even better in the morning when you reheat, strain and serve.