Walking Dead comes back this weekend! Here is a glassful of zombie brains.
You guys, I’ll be honest: I wasn’t even going to plan a cocktail recipe for today. I had even put together a nice roundup of fall cocktails in lieu of a new recipe. But when my friend Julie asked me to develop a Walking Dead cocktail recipe for Insteading, I could not say no. Because I love Julie that much. Don’t worry: that list of fall cocktails is happening next week, and I have something super fun planned for the week after. I was so behind, and now I’m suddenly way ahead on planning cocktail recipes!
ANYWAY. Speaking of way behind, I’m pretty sure that Dave and I have some catching up to do in the Walking Dead department. Maybe a pitcher of BLOODY BRAINS is the thing we need to fuel a marathon? If you can tear me away from rewatching Gilmore Girls on Netflix for 30 seconds, I will tell you.
The recipe below uses homemade bloody Mary mix that you guys have seen here before. What makes this Walking Dead cocktail special are the brains pieces of pickled cauliflower.
Just like making okra pickles, pickling cauliflower is ridiculously easy. The hardest part is waiting overnight while the veggies soak up that good, good brine.
But enough about pickles. Ready to make your Walking Dead cocktail? Let’s get to it!
Walking Dead Cocktail: Bloody Brains
You can make this Walking Dead cocktail into a mocktail by just leaving out the vodka. It’s deliciously creepy either way!
Ingredients
- 1 batch Homemade Bloody Mary Mix (or store-bought. I won’t judge.)
- 6 ounces good vodka (optional)
- Quick Pickled Cauliflower (recipe below)
Method
- Pour 1/2 cup of the mix plus 1 1/2 ounces of vodka (if you’re using it) each into four rocks glasses. Fill them with ice. Float those cauliflower brains in there, and serve.
Quick Pickled Cauliflower
You’ll need either two wide-mouth pint jars or one wide-mouth quart sized mason jar to store these suckers. The wide mouth is important, because you have to fit those big pieces of cauliflower in there and be able to get them back out.
Ingredients
- 2 cups cauliflower florets
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup onion, chopped
- 1 tablespoon dried dill
- 2 cups apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon of salt
Method
- Put all of the ingredients except the cauliflower into a small saucepan, and bring them to a boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring, for just a few minutes. Spoon half of the onion and garlic into your mason jars, dividing them as evenly as you can between the two. Then, divide the cauliflower between your jars too.
- Put the pan of brine back onto the stove, and bring it to a boil again. Remove the pan from the heat, and pour the hot brine over the jars. Add your lids, but just screw them on lightly. When the jars are cool to the touch, tighten the lids, and store your pickles in the fridge until you’re ready to serve. If you can wait overnight to serve these, that’s best, but a few hours is just fine in a pinch. It’s the zombie apocalypse, after all. Maybe you don’t have time to waste!
This recipe is part of the Virtual Vegan Linky Potluck!
Bats and baking
This is great! Perfect for halloween as well as nights watching The Walking Dead <3
Becky Striepe
Thank you! I love a bloody. 🙂
An Unrefined Vegan
Be afraid – be very afraid :-P!
Becky Striepe
Piiiickkklllllesss!
Cadry's Kitchen
What a fun idea! I love bloody mary’s and pickled cauliflower, and using them for a themed cocktail is perfect. Awesome!
Becky Striepe
Thank you, Cadry!