Liquor Treat: Using Leftover Halloween Sweets for Six Candy Cocktails

Photo by terren in Virginia

Candy overload. Must. Make. Cocktails.

Once Halloween has come and gone, I'm always left with a giant pile of Halloween candy. I have eaten it, tortured people by bringing it in to work, and baked it into all kinds of cakes and desserts. But this year, I plan on trying something new. I call it Liquor Treating; I'm turning my leftover candies into cocktails.

Here are some foolproof (or more like 80 proof) candy creations:

6. Infused Vodka - CNN's Eatocracy taught us the perfect way to infuse vodka - with leftover Skittle, Sweet Tarts or Lemonheads. Sweeten your vodka by funneling vodka into a jar or water bottle, dropping in the candy, tightening, and shaking for 10 seconds to mix. Next, refrigerate for a few hours to allow candies to dissolve.

Once the candy has dissolved, strain vodka by pouring through a coffee filter into a large measuring cup. Repeat until all candy pieces have been strained from liquid and use vodka in your favorite sweet and sour cocktail recipe. You can even rim the glass with crushed up leftovers.

5. Milky Way Mudslide - In a blender, combine 4 cups of ice with 3 oz each of vodka, Kahlua or other coffee flavored liquor, and Bailey's or other Irish cream liquor. Drop in a couple of small Milky Way candy bars and mix until well blended.

Line glass with swirls of chocolate syrup and pour in mixture. Top with Whipped cream and a mini Milky Way.

4. Coconut Frozen Martini - In a blender, combine 2 cups of ice with 3 oz each of Malibu, Godiva or other chocolate liqueur, and vodka. Add 3/4 cup half and half or light cream and a few mini Mounds chocolate bars. Mix until well blended, adding more ice or cream if needed.

Serve in martini glasses rimmed with shredded coconut.

3. Jolly Rancher Shots - Infuse vodka with Jolly Rancher candies as instructed above. Fill a shaker with ice and pour in infused vodka and a few splashes of Sour Apple Pucker.

Shake well and pour into shot glasses.

2. Peppermint Pattie & Vodka - Use a Peppermint Pattie as a cute garnish for this mint chocolate drink. Mix one part creme de cacao, one part creme de menthe, and a splash of vanilla flavored vodka.

Shake and pour over glass filled with ice and garnished with a Peppermint Pattie.

1. Tootsie Roll Bubble Tea - Okay, so it's not bubble tea at all - but adding bite sized chunks Tootsie Roll into the drink reminds me of the look of a bubble tea. In a shaker with ice, mix one part Kahlua and one part Orange Juice.

Pour into glass add in chunks of chopped Tootsie Rolls.

Liquor Treat!