Haunting Halloween Cocktails

I love cocktails and never need an excuse to indulge. However, there is only one time of the year that I bring out my creepy cocktail book - All Hallows Eve.  Experimenting with flavours, colours and adding decorations to cocktails can bring hours of fun, especially with interesting ingredients. So after deliberating which of my MANY freaky favourites to share I've decided on three. These involve simple ingredients and  some can also be made non-alcoholic (for the kiddies).

Blood Orange Margaritas

Ingredients
Fresh blood orange juice
Triple sec or Cointreau
Tequila
Salt

Method
Moisten rim of two margarita glasses and dip in salt. Fill a cocktail shaker with crushed ice and add the ingredients. Shake well and pour into glasses. Garnish with slice of orange if required.



Poison Apple Punch

Ingredients
Half a bottle of Apple  Schnapps (omit for children's version)
1 Litre of fresh apple juice
1 bottle of Prosecco (lemonade for children's version)
1 litre of apple cider (not for children)
Half a litre of cranberry juice
3 red apples - diced
3 red apples,whole - just for decor ( do not use for bobbing )
Cubed ice

Method
Place all the ingredients in an ornate punch bowl. Sir and add lots of  ice cubes just before serving.



Witches Black Cat

You won't mind this one if it crosses your path. At first glance you may think that the flavour combination is a little strange, but it's actually very good. Another delightful cocktail for Halloween parties

Ingredients
Vodka
Cherry Brandy
Cranberry juice
Cola

Method
Pour the vodka and cherry brandy into a highball glass filled with ice.
Fill the glass with equal amounts of cranberry juice and cola. .Garnish with a cherry

Have a Spooky Samhain everyone !!!!

And now for something completely different ..... All i pebre - Eels in Piquant Sauce

All i pebre is a spicey dish made with made with eel. This is a famous recipe that originates from Albufera, a lagoon near Valencia. I think it's delicious, however it's an aquired taste. So if you're the adventurous type and fancy this eel dish, why not try this recipe is below?

 
Ingredients for 4 people:

1kg of eels
Olive oil
1 large onion, diced
50 g of flour
sweet paprika
1 chili pepper
3 or 4 cloves of garlic
1 small slice of toasted bread
10 to 12 almonds
2 large potatoes, cubed
parsley
salt
water

Method

Wash the eels in cold water and remove the heads and the tips of the tails. Wash them again and dry with a cloth. Once cleaned, cut them into pieces measuring approximately 6 to 8 cm. Crush the cloves of garlic in a mortar and add to an earthenware dish when the oil is hot.

Dice the onion and when the garlic begins to fry, add it along with the flour and the paprika, stirring at the same time. Also add a fair amount of water, but bear in mind it must not cover the eels, which will be added when it comes to the boil. Peel and cube potatoes, place in the dish and boil for 10 mins. Once the eels are in, simply add salt and chilli pepper, the amount depending on how spicy the stew is intended to be.

Leave everything to cook for 15 or 20 minutes. Five minutes before it is cooked, add the almonds, parsley and the toasted bread, crushing it previously in the mortar.

Buyer's guide - Eels are most often sold live, although they are sometimes available as steaks. A live eel is quite something to manage, so ask your fishmonger for advice.