Add Spooky Edible Eyeballs To Your Halloween Drinks For A Real Scare

A chill breeze and sightings of Halloween decorations at the store can be all it takes to get into a spooky mood. There's no time like the present to host that scary party you've always dreamed of, and there's nothing more witchy than this bloodshot beetroot Halloween cocktail recipe created by Mashed recipe developer Catherine Brookes. This cocktail is a deep red — and even more intriguing with edible eyeballs on top. It may look bloody and grotesque, but this cocktail will be the afterlife of the party.

Brookes' eyeball cocktail toppers are made from lychees, cherries, and raisins — nothing scary about fruit! Lychee is not an everyday purchase for many, but you can find it either peeled and pitted in a can, or fresh and whole in the produce section. Regardless, you'll need that fruit to be peeled and pitted before stuffing a pitted cherry inside it and then, a raisin inside the cherry. Just like that, you have the pupil, an eerie red iris, and the white of the eye.

Catherine Brookes' cocktail contains beetroot juice, lemon juice, ginger juice, club soda, and vodka. You can add or substitute another juice (like pomegranate or cranberry) for some sweetness that sticks to the red theme. Although these edible peepers are paired with a bloodshot beetroot cocktail, there are plenty of other haunting drinks you can make and use eyeballs for as a garnish. Red may be a strategic choice for a spooky drink, but add edible eyeballs to any cocktail (or mocktail), and it will instantly become a spooky sensation. Use them to bring Halloween spirit to mimosas, and don't forget easy upgrades like seasonal glasses or cups, edible sparkles, or a touch of cotton candy around the rim to mimic fog or a spider's web.

There are modifications you can make to the eyeball, too. If cherries and raisins aren't your thing, Brookes suggests using raspberries and blueberries for the iris and pupil. These eyeballs hold together well on a cocktail pick, but if you don't have any, simply float the eyeballs in the drink for an eerie preserved-eyeball-in-a-jar look. If these eyeball cocktails are a hit with your guests, try making boozy eyeball Jell-O shots for your second Halloween party.