How To HOOTENANNY

The best part about Halloween is the scares we share along the way! The tricks we play, the treats we earn, and all the spooks our devilish little hearts could ask for. And while we may not be going trick-or-treating this year, we at Shudder are getting ready to join in on the festivities with a little party of our own: It’s time to gear up for Joe Bob’s Halloween Hootenanny! And what better way to celebrate a hootenanny, hoedown, or shindig than with some killer snacks and a group of your closest friends? 

To make things a bit more festive we cooked up a couple of super simple snacks to go with each of Joe Bob’s three flicks for the evening that you can make at home. So call up some of your favorite folks, grab a few choice pumpkins for carving, and get ready for one hell of a hootenanny! 

Start the night with some bloody butterscotch popcorn. All you’ll need is a large, heavy-bottomed pot, a medium saucepan, and a few simple ingredients you likely have around the kitchen:

• ¼ cup light oil (like vegetable oil)
• 1 cup of popcorn
• 1 tsp salt (but, really, feel free to adjust to taste)
• 1 cup of sugar
• ½ cup of water
• 1 cup of butter, cut into small squares
• Red food coloring

Pop your popcorn by adding the oil to the large pot and heating it over medium-high heat. Test the heat by adding a couple of kernels to the oil and wait for them to pop. Once they do, you’re ready to go! Add the rest and cover it all with a lid, shaking periodically until the popping slows down. Take it off the heat, put it in your favorite Halloween bowl, and season it with salt.

Now for the fun part – the bloody butterscotch! Pour all of the sugar into the center of your saucepan in a little pile and surround that with your ½ cup of water – don’t pour the water on top of the sugar, though. Trust us. Turn the heat up to medium, and keep a close eye on it without stirring. The sugar and water will start to simmer, eventually leaving a sugary syrup. As soon as it starts to turn slightly golden, toss in your butter and whisk the mixture together until it’s all combined and smooth. Add 3-5 drops of red food coloring and stir until the butterscotch is the exact shade of red you want. Pour it over your popcorn, toss to coat, let it chill out for a few minutes and serve as the perfect blood-splattered snack for the gruesome goodies on screen.

Pair this with some more candy goodness – Jell-O shots! Minus the odd complex recipe, all Jell-O shots consist of the same three ingredients: water, your favorite Jell-O flavor, and the hooch of your choosing. But why not get a bit more creative with your Halloween Hootenanny by trying these Halloween Jell-O shots? Get ultra festive with these Candy Corn shots, or go simple with these minimalist Black Magic beauties.

Halloween’s always better with good friends and good food. Okay, it’s better with enough junk food to make your dentist weep. But we’ve definitely got you covered there! Now grab those costumes, carve those pumpkins, and get ready. How many more days ‘till Halloween?

Joe Bob’s Halloween Hootenanny is available on Shudder in both the U.S. and Canada.

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