Fright Potions for Halloween

shrunken head straws

Spooky Punch; Sandra Lee

Photo by: Tara Donne

Tara Donne

For Halloween I often advise people to find one of the many wines available with scary names, such as Sin Zin, Dead Arm or Devil’s Lair. Given the festive nature of fright night, however, it can also be rewarding to whip up a big-batch wine that is sure to give your guests the creeps — in a good way.

Red Punch: The color of villainy, of course, is blood red, so the easiest way to add fright to your night is to mix up a simple Red Wine Punch from Food Network Magazine.

Sangria: With a little more work, you can make a traditional red sangria, whose name appropriately derives from sangre or blood in Spanish. I show you how in this video.

Go Green: Equally impressive would be to surprise your guests with a concoction the color of ghastly green. Obtain some green food coloring and add it to Paula Deen’s Mimosa Punch or Giada’s Apple and Mint Punch.

Accessorize: Because the devil is in the details, be sure to have some plastic creepies on hand or, better yet, fabricate some of Sandra Lee’s Shrunken Head Straws (pictured above). Just as macabre would be to use a marker with edible ink to draw eyeballs on grapes and drop them in your mixture. Or if you really want to play Dr. Evil, purchase an IV bag and pole from the Internet and serve your guests through its tubing.

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