30 seriously scary Halloween recipes for adults

We also have Halloween food ideas for adults, making our favourite recipes into werewolf claws, Dracula's favourite cocktail and wormy pasta...

Halloween treats for kids

Spooky mummy biscuits

Bake these fun cookies for a Halloween party or 'trick or treat' gift. Get the whole family involved with decorating, the kids will love them! Plenty more biscuit and cookie recipe ideas here too...

Mummy cake

This spooky halloween bake would be perfect for your costume party or for trick-or-treaters. Position the eyes right and it'll seem as if this possessed portion of hellishly tasty cake is following you around the room. If you wanted to mix things up a little bit, then the decorations would also work on our salted maple brownie recipe – ahhh-mazing.

Black velvet ghostly cupcakes

These spooktacular black velvet ghostly cupcakes are so terrifyingly tasty that not even the most high strung of paranormal investigators would argue about keeping them around...

Skeleton gingerbread men

This simple gingerbread biscuit recipe easily makes 30 spooky skeletons, and they’re the ideal Halloween treat for all the kids to enjoy. More ginger bakes and cakes here.

Halloween cocktails for a Halloween party

Count Dracula's favourite tipple

A deadly Halloween cocktail... This vodka and tomato cocktail is a lighter take on the sometimes-soupy bloody Mary. The tomatini is a fresh, zingy pick-me-up with a delicious savoury note that will (given its blood red hue) bring a spooky, slightly sinister note to your Halloween-themed party. If you happen to have one too many of these, then our hangover bloody Mary's will help you nurse away the pain the next day. Nothing like the hair of the dog, eh?

Clockwork (blood) orange Campari cocktail

Anthony Burgess would never have guessed that his disturbing dystopian novel, A Clockwork Orange, would play such a part in your Halloween drinks party... but there you go. Campari is an Italian herbal liquor most famous for its bitter taste, beautiful red colour, and the role it plays in the classic negroni. The sweet orange juice in this cocktail balances the slightly bitter taste of Campari to make a refreshing apéritif. If you're a true Burgess fanatic, then why not serve some ice cold White Russians alongside these Clockwork (blood) orange cocktails too?

Brothers Grimm gingerbread and espresso martini cocktail

One of our favourite Halloween cocktails. Rumour has it that once the Brothers Grimm finished compiling the story of Hansel and Gretel, they retired to the drawing room to sip on one of these velvety smooth gingerbread cocktails. Dark and indulgent, they make the perfect drink to serve at your supernatural soirée.

Tequila Mockingbird

If the presence of tequila doesn't scare your guests enough, then the 'suspicious' dark red colour of this prep-ahead cocktail dessert from Sixtyone in Marylebone is sure to unnerve them. Buy dried hibiscus flowers at health food shops or souschef.co.uk.

The woman in white

Give this zesty Burleigh's White Lady cocktail a slightly more gothic name to maintain the Halloween-y vibe you've got going on. If this is your favourite kind of tipple and you're hosting a slightly more classy get together, then our Gentian white lady cocktail with sweet flower petals and violet liqueur is also one to try.

Halloween desserts for a Halloween party

Chocolate caskets

Swap the stripy chocolate icing for the words RIP and you've got rich chocolate cake squares, topped with an indulgent truffle and smothered in double chocolate icing in the shape of caskets – the perfect gothic garnish for your Halloween party spread.

Spiced banana tarte tatin of terror

This deliciously spiced banana tarte tatin recipe comes from the Cinnamon Club. It's easy to make and, without much effort, can look super spooky in the right context. Boost the cinnamony, sweet flavours by serving slices with a scoop of creamy vanilla ice cream.

Wednesday Addam's dream dessert

"Black is such a happy colour"... especially when there's Guinness and dark chocolate involved. It’s best to make this in advance, then leave un-iced in an airtight box overnight or for a couple of days; glaze it an hour-or-so before serving. That way the flavours of the cake all get a chance to develop.

Deep-fried dead man's fingers with hot chocolate sauce

No one will be able to believe how much these homemade dead man's fingers look like Spanish churros... If you fancy making something even more goulishly good to go with these, our salted caramel chocolate pots would also sweeten up those doughy digits quite nicely.

Death by... chocolate cake

We all die in the end, so why not go out on a high with a slice of this deliciously indulgent, grown-up chocolate and burnt butterscotch cake?

Lucifer's black grape and wine sorbet

This sinfully sophisticated recipe is ideal for entertaining guests on All Hallows' Eve. Instead of the sparkling shiraz, you could use a full-bodied red wine or a light, fruity rosé.

Creepy caipirinha jelly

Buy some plastic spiders to suspend in this alcoholic jelly and you've got yourself an eerie green dessert filled with creepy critters. For an authentic caipirinha flavour, use cachaca, a clear Brazilian spirit made from sugarcane. If you can’t get your hands on any, try white rum instead.

Queen Grimhilde's poisoned toffee apples

Now we understand why Snow White fell for the evil queen's wicked trick so easily! These bourbon butterscotch toffee apples are irresistibly tasty and none of your guests are going to be able to stop themselves from biting into one of these boozy, sweet treats. If you're making these for trick-or-treaters, leave out the alcohol and swap the sticks for something child-friendly.

White with fright Oreo cheesecake

Rumour has it that when this cheesecake was just Oreo™ cookie crumbs and cream cheese, it spotted something so dreadfully frightening that all the colour drained right out of it! The poor, sweet thing has never been the same since. If you're a biscuit fanatic or chocolate fiend and this recipe is right up your street, then why not check out some of our other ideas to transform your favourite chocolate bars, biscuits and spreads into something even more indulgent and delicious?

Savoury Halloween party food ideas

Werewolf claws

Easy Halloween party food! Freshly harvested from free-range lycanthropes and served pipping hot, these easy werewolf claws (aubergine sticks) are designed to impress your friends and family as a quick Halloween party starter, or as part of a serve-yourself spooky table spread. With a minty yogurt dip, this Mediterranean-inspired recipe with sumac and za'atar just needs a drizzle of honey to finish it off.

Deep fried worms

Curly, crispy and spicy: deep frying worms (spiralized potato) will give you golden crunchy nests of fries. Top with a simple piri-piri spice mix for extra heat or just sprinkle with sea salt. Got loads of leftover oil? Check out our collection of best ever deep-fried recipes to discover ways to use the rest of it up.

Mrs Lovett's 'beef' pie

Make your guests sing for their supper with this delicious, perfectly cooked 'beef' and mushroom Wellington. We've heard that Sweeney Todd has got some cuts of meat going cheap, but you can always ask your butcher to trim your beef fillet steaks for you instead.

Ursula's pearls

Your guests will be lost for words when you sashay out of the kitchen with these in hand... They will serve six, but if you want to go all out and serve up a huge variety of them then we have lots of other recipes for spicing up this sophisticated shellfish starter.

Witch's cauldron

"Double, double toil and trouble; fire burn, and cauldron bubble... into my mouth. Because this gem squash with cranberry and chestnut stuffing is de-licious!" said one happy guest who was dressed as a wicked witch.

Baked brains

If you're having a Halloween themed dinner party, this is a great recipe. Who knew that zombies were the culinary geniuses of our generation? Not us, for sure. These melting-middle baked (onions) brains are really easy to make and they're also, weirdly, vegetarian (WE KNOW, RIGHT). Use cheddar, or mix with gruyère for a richer filling.

Graveyard mac n' cheese

An amputated shin (beef shin) is cooked in red wine and stock until meltingly tender, then macaroni and cheese is added and baked until golden and bubbly. This 'gruesome' but epic slow-cooked dish comes from the legendary London haunted steak house, Hawksmoor.

Bacon-wrapped eye balls

Make your Halloween party food canapés a bit of fun. This recipe for bacon-wrapped eyeballs (aka dates) with quince marmalade makes for a great and ghoulish Halloween canapé when you have your undead guests over. They look really impressive but are actually very easy to 'harvest' and make...

Undead tagliarini nero with squid, chilli, tomato and garlic

At Halloween, we like our pasta as black as our souls. So this dish is one of our favourites for this time of year. However, as it's so evilly good, this spicy seafood combination is not for the faint hearted, so beware...

Franken-wieners

Although Mary Shelley doesn't go into that much detail, we're pretty sure some chipolatas wrapped in streaky bacon and seasoned with Dijon mustard and sage were involved in the process of constructing Frankenstein's monster – we're about 75% sure, anyway.

Squirmy wormy pasta

Nothing says Halloween party food like a plate of worms... Three of the most comforting words you'll read: worms, butter, cheese... This classic Tuscan (pasta) recipe for pici cacio e pepe comes from Borough Market's Padella.

Dragon's eggs

Khaleesi will not be happy... but your guests will. These dragon's eggs (quail's eggs) are often served as a street snack in Egypt with a little paper cone of dukkah spice blend for dipping. Serve with pickled chillies (available in Middle Eastern shops and some supermarkets), olives and flatbread as a relaxed nibble with drinks.

The team explore the trend for spiced pumpkin (it's appearing in everything from lattes to real ale)

olive magazine podcast ep25 - cucamelons, spiced pumpkin and autumn books