from Cocktails from the Crypt
Movie Morsel: The creature’s design was the handiwork of special effects maestro Sam Winston (who also directed the film!). He crafted Pumpkinhead to be both frightful and sympathetic, much like the cocktail’s spiky kick followed by a sweet, cinnamony relief.
Dare to summon a cocktail that’s as mischievously potent as the film’s titular terror. This brew, serve rom the hollow carcass of a pumpkin, is a medley of autumnal flavors that’ll resurrect your spirits. It melds spiced rum with the earthy sweetness of pumpkin, all topped with a fizz of ginger beer, ensuring each gourdy gulp is like a step through the fog-shrouded pumpkin patch where vengeance first took root.
Ingredients
1 medium-sized pumpkin
16 oz (2 cups or 480 mL) spiced rum
8 oz (1cup or 240 mL) apple juice
8 oz (1 cup or 240 mL) fresh orange juice
4 oz (1/2 cup or 120 mL) agave nectar
16 oz (2 cups or 480 mL) pumpkin puree
A few dashes of cinnamon
A few pinches of nutmeg
24 oz (3 cups or 710 mL) ginger beer
6-8 dashes of Angostura bitters, to taste
Cinnamon sticks, for garnish
Orange wheels, for garnish
Directions
First, create your punchbowl by carving out a fresh, medium-sized pumpkin. (You can also use a craft pumpkin with the top sawed off.
In a large cauldron (or a big pitcher), bewitchingly blend the spiced rum, apple juice, orange juice, agave nectar, pumpkin puree, cinnamon and nutmeg over ice.
Stir until the pumpkin puree is fully integrated and the mixture takes on the hue of a harvest moon. Pour your mixture into your pumpkinhead bowl.
Top the punch with ginger beer and Angostura bitters, stirring gently to preserve the fizz.
Recite your standard incantation to raise a vengeful spirit before serving. Garnish each glass with a cinnamon stick and an orange wheel.
Serves 8
Nada’s Tips & Tricks: You can play with the ingredients using apple puree instead of pumpkin if you’re not a gourd fan. Use more apple juice and less orange juice so the apple flavor remains prominent.
Reprinted with permission from Cocktails from the Crypt by Kimberley Elizabeth & Jonathan De Haan. Page Street Publishing Co. 2024. Photo credit: Reham Baligh. https://www.pagestreetpublishing.com/