Friday Fright Nightcaps: The Sweetest Black Cat

Happy October! All month along will be a celebration to Halloween Icons and I’m kicking off the official Halloween season with a tribute to the sassiest Halloween icon of them all, the black cat.

Say hello to my variation of a purple Martini, The Sweetest Black Cat, aptly named because of its sweet ingredients. If sweetness isn’t your thing, well, topping off with just a tad bit more vodka or ginger ale, to balance the flavors, oughta do the trick.

INGREDIENTS:

3 oz vodka
1 1/2 oz cranberry juice
1/2 oz blue curacao
1/2 oz sweet and sour mix
1/2 oz pomegranate grenadine
1/2 oz ginger ale (or 7-up/Sprite)

Please drink responsibily, don’t drink and drive, and have a safe and happy Halloween season!

Happy Halloween 2021!

Halloween is a celebration of life! By….warding…off…the dead….anyhoo, whether you like the old vintage style, cute and spooky, spine-tingling chills and thrills, or super gory to the max, Halloweentime is a magical season filled with creativity, community spirit, fun, and wonder. Every year, Halloween Haiku celebrates all month long, and while it’s gonna be challenging, this year we’re doing it again!

Our theme in October is Halloween Icons…ya know, bats, black cats, ghosts, pumpkins, etc., all those things that are known to represent Halloween. Now, I’ve come up with a bunch, but I can’t wait to hear what icons you think Halloween just wouldn’t be the same without.

This Halloween season, I’m changing up the traditional 31 days format and I plan to use social media a bit more, so please, join in the fun, and follow me @Halloweenhaiku9 on Instagram and Twitter

Here’s what’s in store for October:

3^rd Annual Halloween Haiku Contest Sharpen those pencils! I want to see your most original Halloween Icons themed haiku. I’m giving away a Grand Prize Pack worth over $50!
I might even have some small prizes for runner-ups.

More details about the haiku contest will be announced on October 1^st.

Halloween Icons Photo Countdown (Instagram only)
October photo countdown to Halloween. No contest, just something to do for fun Oct. 1-31st. Let’s see those pictures! Use #halloweeniconsphotochallenge

31 Days of Halloween Schedule:

Monday Macabre (website and social media)

Mondays are always dedicated to Haiku, but every Monday in October we’ll celebrate Halloween icons.

Tiny Terror Tuesdays (social media)

Sometimes little things pack a big punch. Every Tuesday, I’ll be sharing scenes from my haunted dioramas and miniatures.

Wicked Art Wednesdays (social media)

Every Wednesday, I’ll share some spooktacular Halloween art. I might even post some my own original Halloween pencil stencil art.

Throwback Thursdays (website)

Every Thursday, let’s travel back to the golden age of Vintage Halloween advertising. Some ads were amusing, and some, were downright cringeworthy. Let’s debate!

Friday Fright Nightcaps (website and social media)

Witches aren’t the only ones who drink brews! Check-in every Friday evening to see what wild Halloween season-inspired cocktail I pull outta the cauldron.

Sinister Saturdays (website and social media)

Every Saturday, I’ll rotate between sharing one savory and one sweet recipe, all guaranteed to have you screaming for more! I may even try to make some of these myself. Now, that’s scary!

Poe Sundays (website and social media)

Just like we do every year, we’ll celebrate the gothic genius of Edgar Allan Poe, master of macabre.

Have a safe and happy Halloween season, everyone!

Recipe of the month-Xmas Edition: Elder-Cranberry Margarita

Show up to the virtual Christmas party with a visually stunning drink, I call, the Elder-Cranberry Margarita! Let them drink all the eggnog, while you sip this cherry red margarita on the rocks instead. With only four ingredients, it’s a simple yet festive holiday drink. Cheers!

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup. Cranberry Juice
1oz. Tequila
1/2 oz. Triple Sec
1/2 oz. Elderflower Liqueur (St. Germain)

Optional Garnish:
Salt w/red food coloring for rim

If the Elderflower is too sweet for you, you can leave out or use a tad bit more tequila to balance out the flavors.

Friday Fright Nightcaps: Devilish Mango Margarita

Now, I’m not much into religion, but I’m convinced somebody opened a portal to hell and let all the demons out this year. I’ve had a helluva week and I’m sure you have too. Let’s have magaritas!

Since it’s Halloween season, I wanted an orange margarita, so I put together my own version of the Spicy Mango Margarita. How much bite to add to it depends on you. Do you like it hot and spicy? Or are you more of an angelic type?

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 Ripe Mango (Skin removed, pitted, cut into cubes)
3 ounces Pineapple Juice
1 ounce Lime Juice
3 ounces Triple Sec
3 ounces Tequila
1 tablespoon Grenadine

Rim:
3/4 teaspoon Chili Powder (or Cayenne)
1 1/2 teaspoon Course Salt or Sea Salt

Garnish:
Lime Wedge

I tried a little harder to make the presentation more professional. How did I do? 🙂 Hit me up in the comments section below or find me @HalloweenHaiku9 on Instagram or Twitter

Fright Fright Nightcaps: Vampire’s Kiss Shots

Happy Friday! Today is National Liqueur Day, and to celebrate, I made my own version of Vampire’s Kiss Shots, using Bailey’s Irish Cream. If you’re a fan of chocolate, Vodka or Irish Cream, this is a dreamy cocktail. Personally, all chocolate style cocktails are my thing. Some people don’t like them cuz they’re too sweet. If you don’t have a sweet tooth, leave out the sugar, add more Vodka and use the chocolate sparingly.

INGREDIENTS:

.05-1 oz Vodka
1 oz Irish Cream
Raspberries
Chocolate syrup to garnish the glass
1 tsp Sugar

Here’s the pic of my own version with a couple of alterations, first I don’t own a tall clear shot glass, so, I used a small dessert glass instead. Next, I used strawberries instead of raspberries because raspberries cause allergies in my home and they’re technically banned. I think the recipe turned out great, but obviously didn’t look the same.

Plan to try the recipe, let’s see those pics! Post them in comments are tag me @HalloweenHaiku9 on Instagram or Twitter.

Friday Fright Nightcaps

It’s the return of Friday Fright Nightcaps!

Today, in honor of National Pizza Party Day, which no one is celebrating due to the pandemic, my sources tell me that the daiquiri is the perfect companion for heavy pizzas, such as pepperoni, or sausage, or pepperoni and sausage…something about all that cheese and red sauce pairing well with the rum and tart.
So, fire up that old stone oven because I found a fangalicious recipe for a Halloween Daiquiri from the good folks over at Vinepair that won’t wait til Fall.

halloween daquiri vinepair — Halloween Daiquiri by Vine Pair

Ingredients:

5 ounces of rum
1 lime, juiced
6-8 mandarins, juiced
1 teaspoon of agave nectar
½ cup of ice

Garnish: sliced mandarin

halloween daquiri2 — Halloween Daiquiri by Vine Pair

To view the full recipe, please visit here:
https://vinepair.com/wine-blog/halloween-daiquiri-recipe/

So, whether you’re logging into Door Dash during the pandemic or learning how to use your oven for the first time since you rented the place, it’s pizza time!

Friday Fright Nightcaps – Frankenstein Cocktail

Today is the last Friday in October, which means it’s National Frankenstein Friday! Weary from the work week? Well, give your system a jolt with a spookalicious drink to kick off the last big weekend of the Halloween season. Miss Information teaches us that science can be fun with this freaky good Frankenstein Cocktail.

halloween-frankenstein-cocktail-gummy-eyeballs

Ingredient List

gummy eyeballs
ice
black sanding sugar
2 Shots Vodka
1 Shot Triple Sec
1 Shot Rose’s Lime Juice

For full mixing instructions, please go here: https://www.missinformationblog.com/halloween-cocktails/

halloween-frankenstein-cocktail-gummy-eyeballs-vertical

halloween-cocktails-drinks-frankenstein-FB-398x400

Hey all you scientists, if you prefer your monsters to be a little more green (or blue or purple or whatever), a dab of food coloring should help.

Friday Fright Nightcaps – Zombtini

Who doesn’t love a good zombie story? Today, we celebrate the return of Columbus, Tallahassee, Wichita and Little Rock, a group of survivors struggling to stay alive in zombie ravaged America, in the horror-comedy Zombieland: Double Tap.

Let’s be honest, most Americans feel like total zombies at the end of long work week. We could use a good pick-me-up to bring back some color to our cheeks. The folks over at Totally the Bomb know what it takes to blow us away with a great new take on the classic martini. May I present, the Zombtini

zombtini — Zombtini Photos by TotallytheBomb.com

Ingredients:

1 oz. Captain Morgan White Rum
2 oz. Dekuyper Melon Liqueur
1 oz. 100% Pineapple Juice
0.5 oz. Sprite
Dash of Grenadine (garnish)

zombtini 3 — Zombtini Photos by TotallytheBomb.com

For full mixing instructions, please go here: https://totallythebomb.com/make-your-own-zombtini

For those of you with one foot in the grave, remember to drink responsibly.

Friday Fright Nightcaps – The Walking Dead Cocktail

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, The Walking Dead returned this past week for its tenth season. The Walking Dead comics, once considered too complicated for mainstream television, now inspire pop culture in ways, we haven’t seen since the Romero’s horror hit masterpiece, Night of the Living Dead.

Last season divided fans, but with a new spin-off show in the works, in addition to the already popular, Fear the Walking Dead, there’s no denying that we like zombie TV. So, grab your cocktail shaker and let’s celebrate with Kat Balog’s crazy take on an old classic cocktail, The Walking Dead Cocktail.

walking-dead-zombie-cocktail- — Photo ©Kat Balog

Ingredients:

1-1/2 oz vodka
1 oz Kahlua
2 oz cream
1 tbsp caramel topping
1 tbsp. fudge topping
Ice

Blood:
– 3 tbsp Simple syrup
– 2 drops Red food coloring

For mixing instructions, please go here: https://katbalogger.com/the-walking-dead-zombie-cocktail

Return to Spooky Season – Happy October

oct shadows

October 1st is only a few days away and it’s one big Halloween party all day, every day, around here. This season, I’m encouraging people to do two things, 1) be Green for Halloween, and 2) take the Halloween Pledge, a pledge to practice one old Halloween tradition and introduce a random new tradition into your celebrations this year.

Before I share the schedule of festivities coming in October, I have an exciting new development to report, Halloween Haiku has new message boards! You can access the forum by clicking on the spinning pumpkin on the right sidebar of the home page.

The forum hopefully will be a place where we can have a little fun together. There’s going to be Halloween trivia, scary movie trivia, along with random chat and silliness, and a special contest on Halloween Day.

Halloween 2019 Schedule

Monday Macabre

Every Monday, you’ll find spine-tingling haiku so scary, you’ll sleep with the light on

Tuesday Terror

Every Tuesday, we’ll be celebrating the best of horror cinema, dug up from the Hollywood Vaults

Wicked Art Wednesdays

Every Wednesday, I’ll be showcasing art from five of the most brilliant Halloween artists in the industry

Throwback Thursdays

Every Thursday, we’ll share in the memories of vintage Halloween and Halloween traditions

Friday Fright Nightcaps

Every Friday, you’ll find chilling adult cocktail recipes from the other side

Sinister Saturdays

Every Saturday, I’ll be serving up decadent desserts and savory Halloween recipes so sinful, you might need an exorcism on November 1st.

Poe Sundays

Grab a cup of tea, sit back, and read the chilling classics of the Master of the Macabre, Edgar Allan Poe

October 31^st – Halloween Haiku Challenge

On Halloween day, people will have the opportunity to post their own original, spooky haiku for a chance to win a prize bag, valued over $25 (more details to be announced).

31 Days of Halloween (on Social Media)

Instagram – Halloween Haiku Photo Challenge
Join us in posting cool pics to match the #HalloweenHaikuPhotoChallenge this October. Don’t worry about missing any days. It’s Halloween, you should be out having fun. You can post anytime, just remember to use: #HalloweenHaikuPhotoChallenge

Halloween Photo Challenge (1)

Twitterween
Halloween Haiku is a proud member of the Samhain Society, and I’ll be happily sharing the Halloween fun and festivities of my fellow community-goers. Everyone has been working so hard and I’m super stoked to join in the celebrations.

Pinterest
Check out our boards for more Halloween fun ideas and inspiration. We’ve got at least 5 new boards!

Wishing you all a fun, safe and memorable, haunting season!