On Sundays, we celebrate the Master of Macabre, Edgar Allan Poe
Fun Fact: Readers of the day were so horrified by the story’s violence, they complained to the editor of the Messenger, the first magazine to publish Berenice. Poe himself later removed 4 paragraphs of text, thus, many early publishings are missing the detailed heinous act of Poe’s story.
Poe was angry at being forced to self-censor his own work, believing a story should be judged solely by how many copies it sold.
There are only two weekends left in October and it’s time to kick it up a notch. No Halloween party plans, no problem. You can totally make your own party with this Spooky Spicy Halloween Margarita!
Spooky Spicy Halloween Margarita 3
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup ice
1/2 cup orange juice (fresh or concentrate)
5 oz. Blood-orange margarita mix
1 tsp. lime juice
1 tsp. hot sauce (I used Franks Red Hot)
1 tbsp Agave Syrup
2-3 oz. tequila
Garnish with orange slices or lime wedges or black salt (optional)
Fast and Easy Black Salt Rim Garnish: 1 tablespoon of sea salt 4 drops blue food coloring 4 drops red food coloring Mix very well together
Add tiny bit of lime juice around glass rim and dip glass in black salt
INSTRUCTIONS:
Put ice, blood orange mix, orange juice, lime juice, Agave syrup, hot sauce, and tequila in a blender and blend well.
Pour into glass
Garnish with black salt rim or fresh fruit (optional)
Spooky Spicy Halloween Margarita Ingredients
As usual, this recipe is highly modifiable. Too spicy, add more juice. Want more spice, add more hot sauce. Want more alcohol, add another ounce of tequila.
Spooky Spicy Halloween Margarita @HalloweenKristy
I’ve heard rumblings that recipes with “premade” ingredients aren’t good recipes. Well, to that I say, congradu-friggin-lations on having your life in order long enough to make stuff from scratch, but the rest of us don’t have time for that. Now, move along, you’re blocking the blender. It’s time for Spooky Spicy Halloween Margaritas!
Cigarette makers were some of the first to use Halloween in advertising. For at least a hundred years, people were fooled into thinking cigarettes didn’t taste like ashtrays.
ABC circa 1947
Famous actors and entertainers would personally vouch for products, back in the day when celebrities were thought to have integrity and such opinions could be trusted.
Old Gold circa 1950s
There was the disturbing common practice of real medical doctors declaring some cigarette brands healthier than others and even making claims that smoking was beneficial.
Old Gold took the high road and chose not to lie about selling products that kill people.
Lucky Strikes circa 1960s
What a waste of a good hat!
BH100 circa 1970s
Excess was king during the 70s. From cigarettes to Halloween costumes, everything was sexy.
Newport brands liked to show pretty young couples having a ball carving jack-o-lanterns and picking out pumpkins to show how romantic cigarettes can be. I guess the couple that smokes together, loses a lung together.
In the 80s, Camel made huge profits off its Joe Camel character and sexy ads selling cigarettes that made you look cool.
Kamel Reds circa 1990s
By early 90s though, the jig was up, whistle-blowers started coming forward about the lies big tobacco companies told the world about their filthy products and the print ads all but disappeared in a puff of smoke.
van-Gogh-skeleton-with-cigarette
So, whether we want to admit it or not, our favorite holiday definitely helped sell cancer sticks.
Our theme this month is Halloween icons. The tombstone is the ultimate Halloween icon. Grave markers give us information and no matter shape and size, they are last honors of the person the dead once were. Let’s be honest, some a little creepier than others.
creaky tombstones under the pale moon graveyard shuffling
On Sundays, we celebrate the Master of Macabre, Edgar Allan Poe
Fun Facts: Poe himself had an obsessive fear of being buried alive do to catslepsy, a state where someone occasionally falls completely still and is unable to move or speak. There were a few cases of it happening during Poe’s lifetime that made the papers. No doubt those stories left a huge impression on the author.
The bright red color of Red Velvet Demon Pancakes are perfect for Halloween breakfast. Put the batter in a skull cake pan and bake for 15 mins for an extra treat.
I used a simple pre-made mix but any red velvet Pancakes recipe and skull pan will do.
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup Red Velvet Pancake Mix 2/3 cup cold water 1 large egg
Butter (topping) Maple Syrup/Fruit Syrup (topping)
Fresh Fruit (garnish) Dollop of whipped cream (garnish)
Add a little S.A.S.S. to your Halloween with this delicious autumn sangria.
Samhain Apple Spiced Sangria
INGREDIENTS:
1 bottle red wine 1 bottle sparkling apple cider (Martinelli’s) 1 cup spiced rum 2 cinnamon sticks 1/2 pear 1/2 apple 1/2 orange 1 cup strawberries 1 cup blueberries
Directions:
Place the sliced fruit (pear, orange, apple slices, etc.) in the bottom of a pitcher.
Add the red wine, apple cider, spiced rum, and cinnamon sticks. Stir well. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 2-3 hours.
This recipe is highly modifiable. I find Red Blends and Cabs are best, but any wine will work. Switch out the rum with brandy for less spice. Choose different fruit if you’d like.
I’m not ashamed of my age nor to admit that I miss the old stores like K-Mart, F.W. Woolworth Co., and Toys ‘R Us during Halloweentime. K-Mart and Woolworth’s were like one-stop shopping. They had everything.
F.W. Woolworth Co circa 1960s
Up until their demise in the early 90s, I was weekly shopper. In fact, I used to work at the mall and went Woolworth’s every day during my lunch hour. They had some cool Halloween ads too.
F.W. Woolworth Co circa 1970s
Once the center in American lives, most of these department stores no longer exist.
Selling cheap Halloween costumes became big business in the 60s through the 70s and 80s. Most were made of highly flammable plastic. They tore easily and it was hard to see through the little eye holes. These days, costumes like that would get canceled before they were even loaded onto the truck, but they’re considered vintage Halloween antiques now. A rare, unopened, or one in pristine condition could be worth quite a lot of money.
Osco Drug Store
Osco Drug Store is still in business. I believe it’s part of Albertsons/CVS family now. Do you see those candy bar prices? Those were full candy bars too!
Moore & O’Neal circa 1920s
A few years ago, Tucson.com dug up old print ads from the 1920s through 1960s to prove that Halloween has always been a big celebration in Tucson. There were far too many to post here, so go check them out by clicking the picture below.
Goodmans print ad from feature article found at Tucson.com
I find it funny that people complain about the overcommercialization of Halloween, but these vintage ads prove stores have been cashing in on the Halloween craze since the 1920s.
Every Sunday, we celebrate excerpts and quotes from the works of the Master of Macabre, Edgar Allan Poe.
Fun Facts: It seems Poe was influenced by a number of other authors of his time to write a story based on the Spanish Inquisition, after reading History of the Spanish Inquisition by Juan Antonio Llorente. William Mudford’s The Iron Shroud, a short story of iron torture chamber was also an influence, as well as George Sale’s translations of the Qur’an, for which many of Poe’s works were heavily inspired by.*
Halloween Horror Haiku 
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