Welcome to Madia & Matilda's
Halloween Party
Halloween isn't just for kids. We're excited to bring you a post all about the world's favourite Autumn festival— for adults! Step this way for boozy Halloween beverages, delicious pumpkin treats, and some amazing outfit ideas that are too good to only wear on Halloween!
Disturbing Drinks
Our first recipe is a cocktail that Snow White's evil stepmother would be proud of. Cosmopolitan magazine calls it called Poisoned Apple Pie...
- Add 2 oz. dark rum, 1/2 oz. heavy cream, 1/2 oz. of cinnamon syrup and 1 medium egg white to a cocktail shaker without ice
- Shake it up! 30 seconds should do it. Next add ice, then shake again to chill through
- Strain the mixture into a glass and top up slowly with sparkling apple juice (Cosmo recommends the IZZE brand, but we suspect another one would work just as well)
- For that wicked finishing touch, add a little ground cinnamon powder and 2 pinches of activated charcoal powder. Seriously, it looks amazing! Get some here.
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| The evil-looking Poisonous Apple Pie cocktail, courtesy of Cosmopolitan magazine |
Halloween in the Tropics. Our next offering is a calming tonic for the evil stepmother after she hears that Snow White is still the fairest of them all. The Food Network calls this one a "brew to chill out stressed witches". After an evening of small ghosts hanging on the doorbell, you're going to need it!
- Mix 30ml pineapple juice with 30ml cranberry juice in a pewter cauldron (we recommend using a pewter cauldron, size 2. Buy from Potage's: first shop on the left after the Three Broomsticks, on Diagon Alley)
- Add 60ml lemonade. Stir clockwise 3 times
- Pour into 4 glasses
- Just before drinking, add one shot (40ml) of Malibu coconut rum to each glass
Green Slime Soda, a non-alcoholic drink for tiny vampires, or grown-up zombies who have to drive home after the party!
- Stir 3 tablespoons of sugar into 1/4 cup of lime juice
- Add 1 cup of sparkling water and give it all a stir
- Measure one scoop of lime sherbet or lime sorbet and add to the drink. Stir well and serve
Other tips and tricks:
- We love the idea of mixing a little red food colouring into golden syrup in a shallow bowl and dipping the rim of a glass into it. It should look as if there's blood dripping down your glass!
- Food-grade dry ice cubes add drama to cocktails
- You could try adding slices of blood orange to your glasses when serving, either to line the inside of the glass or as a garnish on top of the glass
Spooky Treats
Pumpkin everything! Bring it on! What Halloween gathering would be complete without some delicious homemade bakes? Not ours, no way! So put on The Monster Mash at full blast and get making.
Pumpkin Puree
Use this as the pumpkin-y base to all your baked pumpkin-y delights!
- Preheat your oven to 170℃/gas mark 3
- Take a small-medium pumpkin and chop the top off, where the stalk is/would be. (It's best to use pumpkins which are grown to be eaten, rather than the ones that are grown to be carved)
- Chop the whole pumpkin in half vertically, right down the middle. Remove the seeds and stringy bits with a spoon. Don't throw the seeds away! You can roast them later
- Next, chop each half in half again, lengthways. Repeat with the other half of the pumpkin, so you end up with four chunks of pumpkin which look a bit like giant orange slices
- Pop the pumpkin wedges on a baking tray and into the oven for about 45 minutes, or until they go a bit brown on the edges
- Remove the skin from the pumpkin slices while they're still warm, scraping an flesh leftover on the skin off with a knife
- Whizz up the flesh in a blender or food processor. If the mixture looks dry, add a little water. If it's too wet, strain it gently through a muslin cloth or similar
- Use immediately or freeze. This puree keeps for a good 6-8 months, so feel free to carve up more than one pumpkin and put the lot into the freezer for use at a later date. For more about this recipe, see this fab blog post from The Pioneer Woman
Using your pumpkin puree
Put your beautiful puree to good use! How about these spiced pumpkin cookies, perfect for a cold evening...
You will need:
- 300g plain flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 125g butter, softened
- 300g caster sugar
- 250g pumpkin puree
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Method:
- Preheat your oven to 180℃/gas mark 4. Combine the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves and salt; then set aside
- In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and caster sugar. Add the pumpkin puree, egg and vanilla extract to the butter mixture, and beat until creamy. Mix in the dry ingredients. Drop tablespoons of the mixture onto the baking tray and flatten slightly with the back of the spoon
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven, cool and devour. How easy is that?! Thanks to All Recipes for this great one.
The Costume Competition
It's a Halloween party, after all! Here are our top picks for the Autumn Season...
Presenting our wonderful, versatile Emily dress! You can layer her up by wearing a woolly sweater or top underneath (it is October after all), or dress her up by adding... whatever you want! Bats' wings, devil horns, a veil, you name it. This dress is the perfect sustainable canvas: not blank, but adaptable. Get it here.
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| Emily dress |
Dracula's Bride? More like Dracula himself in female form. If you're after a perfect Halloween dress with just the right amount of drama, look no further: our Rosemary dress has it all. Buy it here and channel your inner Wednesday Addams. You know she's in there!
Well, that's all from us! Hope you have a kooky, spooky Halloween! Please get in touch with pics of your Halloween outfits, drinks or bakes, we'd love to hear from you!
Sincerely Madia & Matilda
