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Halloween can be fun or frightening, depending on how you celebrate. All too often, underage drinking can turn what should be a fun holiday into a dangerous — sometimes deadly — celebration. But, kids and teenagers won’t say “Boo!” to some festive Halloween mocktails!

Local representatives from Talk It Out, the North Carolina campaign to reduce underage drinking, are teaching parents and kids how to make “Instagram-worthy” Halloween mocktails. Teens will have a blast making, drinking and snapping photos of these spooky concoctions.

Instagram-Worthy Halloween Mocktails:

• Slimy Green Goo– This drink slithers with green, gooey satisfaction. It’s made with lemon-lime soda, green food coloring, rainbow sherbet and lots of gummy worms.
• Candy Corn Crush– Layers of white, orange, and yellow bring the Halloween treat to life in liquid form. It’s made with white pineapple coconut juice, orange mango juice, yellow vitamin water and crushed ice.
• Bubbly Witch’s Brew– This bubbly brew fizzes and sizzles and it puts on quite a show. The ingredients include lemonade, grape juice, lemon-lime soda and grape JELL-O powder.

See below for detailed recipes and instructions.

Guidelines for a Safe Halloween

This year, underage drinking is an even bigger risk — the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lists using alcohol or drugs this holiday season as a high-risk activity during the pandemic.

The CDC recently released guidelines to help families celebrate the fall holidays and prevent the spread of COVID-19. If you decide to host or attend a Halloween party, keep these tips from the CDC in mind:

• Outdoor activities are safer than indoor activities.
• Follow local and state guidance related to gathering restrictions in your area.
• Maintain a distance of at least six feet or more from people who are not members of your household.
• Wear a mask at all times (Halloween masks are not a substitute for cloth masks, consider wearing a Halloween-themed cloth mask).
• Avoid any self-serve food or drink options, such as buffets or drink stations. Offer single-use options, consider having one person serve food or bring your own utensils and food if attending a party.
• The CDC considers using alcohol or drugs a high-risk activity because they can cloud judgement and increase risky behaviors. Talk to your kids about avoiding underage drinking.

Talk It Out NC ambassadors can also discuss additional teen Halloween gathering tips, including:

• Host a virtual Halloween costume party.
• Decorate the fireplace or large window as the perfect Halloween photo backdrop.
• Don’t leave alcohol out where young people can get to it.
• Be responsible when it comes to alcohol and set a good example.
• Take the Talk It Out Pledge with your teen before the party.

About Talk It Out NC:

The North Carolina Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission launched the Talk It Out NC campaign in 2014. The goal of the multimedia awareness and engagement campaign is to reduce underage drinking by encouraging conversations between responsible adults and young people. Talk It Out NC offers resources for parents and others who need guidance talking to their children about the dangers of underage drinking.

Visit www.talkitoutnc.org to get the conversation started.

Mocktail recipes:

Slimy Green Goo

This drink slithers with green, gooey satisfaction.

Ingredients:

• 2-liter bottle of lemon-lime soda
• 8 drops of green food coloring
• 1 quart of rainbow sherbet
• Package of gummy worms

Put eight drops of food coloring in a cold bottle of lemon-lime soda. Add more or less food coloring depending on how green you want to go!

To make eight drinks, add 8 ounces of green soda to each glass. Place one scoop of sherbet in each drink. Garnish with gummy worms.

Candy Corn Crush

This sweet treat is even tastier than the traditional Halloween candy!

Ingredients:

• White pineapple coconut juice
• Orange mango juice
• Yellow Vitamin Water (energy-tropical citrus)
• Crushed ice

You will need a funnel to create the candy corn layers, this drink needs to be served immediately.

Fill the bottom third of a clear glass with crushed ice and pour yellow Vitamin Water on top. Fill the middle of the glass with another layer of crushed ice. Place a funnel in the middle of the top layer of ice and pour orange mango juice into the funnel. Fill the remainder of the glass with crushed ice, and use the funnel to pour white pineapple coconut juice on the top third of the drink. Don’t shake or stir!

Bubbly Witch’s Brew

This bubbly brew fizzes with ooze, much to delight of little partygoers.

Ingredients

• 1/8 cup lemonade
• 1/8 cup grape juice
• ¾ cup lemon-lime soda
• 1 tsp. blue or purple JELL-O powder

Add lemonade first, then the grape juice, to an 8-ounce cup. Fill the rest of the cup with lemon-lime soda. Just before serving, add the JELL-O. Make sure everyone’s watching, because this creates quite a show!

READ ABOUT MORE COMMUNITY NEWS AND EVENTS HERE.

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