Liven Up Your Halloween Party With Dry Ice!

Before we dive into drink recipes, let's talk about the safe handling of dry ice. What is dry ice? Dry ice is the solid form of carbon dioxide with a temperature reading of -109.3 °F. With that being said, never handle dry ice with your bare hands. Frostbite can occur from improper handling of dry ice. Gloves and/or tongs should be used to safely handle something that extremely cold.

Where can I get some dry ice?

You don't have to break into a science lab to get a chunk of dry ice. It is available at most supermarkets located usually in the front of the store near the cash registers. They are stored in a freezer container with a lock on it so you'll have to flag down an associate to get some. Dry ice is usually sold by the pound between $1.10 to $3.00 per lbs. When going to the store, don't forget to bring gloves and freezer bag to transport it.

How to use dry ice:

Dry Ice is usually used as a cooling agent to keep food cold or frozen when a refrigerator is not available. If you're going camping, wrap a towel around some dry ice and place it in a cooler. It will keep your food from spoiling and won't leave a watery mess. When dry ice melts, the liquid quickly evaporates into a gas.

To prepare dry ice for drinks and cocktails, you'll need to break down a large piece into small chunks. Place the large piece of dry ice on a towel underneath to prevent slipping. Wear some eye protection and then take a flat head screwdriver and hammer and gently chisel away.

You can jazz up the punch bowl with a few chunks of dry ice to create bubbling and misty effect. Remind your guests to take caution if they scoop up a piece of dry ice. A floating little piece and can burn the lips.

If you like to use it a single drink, place a piece of dry ice at the bottom of the glass and pile it on top with regular ice to prevent it from floating up.

You can also wrap a piece of dry ice in some plastic wrap and pop it in a tall glass to differentiate it from the regular ice. I learned this trick from going to the 626 Night Market where vendors sold these bubbly concoctions.

Drinking liquids that contain dry ice is completely safe. The byproduct from dry ice melting in a drink is just carbon dioxide, a natural gas in our atmosphere.

Have fun and be creative when making your drinks come alive!

Simple Witch's Brew

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon of a red syrup (Grenadine or Cherry syrup)

1/2 Cup of ice

A piece of dry ice

1 Cup of lemon-lime soda

Directions:

Place a piece of dry ice at the bottom of a tall glass. Fill with ice, pour in the syrup and top it off with the lemon-lime soda. You can also spike it with a shot of vodka or rum!