Purple People Eater – Color Changing Halloween Cocktail

By Lucy Parissi

4.67 from 3 votes

, Updated Oct 18, 2026

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Prepare to be spooked by the Purple People Eater! This gin, cranberry and elderflower cocktail is topped with magical butterfly pea flower ice that turns from blue to purple as it melts. Make it even spookier with some edible fake blood around the rim of the glass.

I have been sitting on this cocktail for several weeks debating whether or not to post the recipe. If I am being completely honest, part of the reason for this procrastination is that I didn’t know what to name it. It looks straight out of Monsters Inc. to me, but that’s not very scary now, is it?

Then, just as I was about to throw in the towel, my friend Julia jumped in with the perfect name: “One Eyed One Horned Flying Purple People Eater”! This is actually the title of a very catchy song – just Google it and prepare to dance around the kitchen with your kids (or dogs) for a bit.

A Spooky Twist on the Red Queen

This Halloween drink is basically a riff on the Red Queen, which is, by far, the most popular cocktail on my blog. A mix of cranberry juice, lemon juice, gin and St-Germain elderflower liqueur, it’s a perfect cocktail to toast with during the festive season.

Give it a little twist with magical color changing ice (actually butterfly pea flower tea) and it is perfect Halloween fodder. I was introduced to the properties of blue pea flowers by The Flavor Bender, and these days you can easily buy them online.

The flowers produce an intense blue tea that can also be used to turn vodka, gin or tequila a vibrant blue. But what’s even more amazing is that the blue color turns purple when it meets acidic liquids like lemon or cranberry juice – so the ice changes color in the glass as it melts.

Here’s What You’ll Need

Tools: a cocktail shaker, an ice cube tray, a powerful blender for crushing the ice and, for extra spooky points, skull cocktail glasses.

• Butterfly pea flowers: 2–3 tablespoons of dried flowers brew a deep blue tea for the ice. Let it steep until the color is really intense.
• Gin: a classic London dry gin works best. Vodka works too if you prefer.
• Cranberry juice: gives the drink its blood-red base and enough acidity to turn the blue ice purple.
• St-Germain elderflower liqueur: adds a floral sweetness that balances the tart cranberry.
• Lemon juice: freshly squeezed, and add a little more to taste for a deeper purple.
• Lychees and cocktail cherries: fresh or canned lychees stuffed with a cherry (or a blueberry) make the creepy eyeballs.

How to Make a Purple People Eater Cocktail

Make the Blue Ice

1. Pour boiling water over the butterfly pea flowers and let them steep until the tea is an intense blue.
2. Let the tea cool, then pour it into an ice cube tray and freeze until solid.
3. Crush the blue ice cubes in a powerful blender. Keep the crushed ice in a jug in the freezer until you need it.

Mix the Cocktail

1. Shake the cranberry juice, gin, St-Germain and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker half filled with ice.
2. Fill two glasses with ice cubes and divide the cocktail between them.
3. Top with the blue crushed ice and watch it turn purple as it melts!

Make the Eyeballs

1. Push a cocktail cherry (or a blueberry) into each lychee, thread them onto cocktail sticks and balance them on the glasses.

Make It Extra Spooky

• Bloody rim: drip some edible fake blood around the rim of each glass before pouring.
• Spooky glassware: serve it in skull cocktail glasses for maximum Halloween drama.
• Make a pitcher: scale up the cocktail in a jug and let guests top their own glasses with blue ice.

You can have endless fun playing around with butterfly pea flowers – I actually made a series of other cocktails that I might share some other time. So here’s to a thoroughly spooky Halloween – just beware of Purple People Eaters, they are actually quite potent!

More Halloween Recipes

• Guinness Black Magic Cocktail – dark, moody and mysterious
• Halloween Bone Cake – a gory showstopper for the party table
• Baileys Freakshake – the ultimate grown-up Halloween drink
• Meringue Bones – easy, crisp and wonderfully creepy

Looking for more spooky ideas? Browse all my Halloween recipes, from cakes and treats to cocktails.

Please leave a comment and rating if you try this recipe, follow me on Pinterest for more easy recipes and don’t forget to tag me on Instagram or TikTok so I can see your creations.

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4.67 from 3 votes

Purple People Eater Halloween Cocktail

By Lucy Parissi | Supergolden Bakes

Prepare to be spooked by the Purple People Eater! Gin, cranberry and elderflower liqueur topped with magical butterfly pea flower ice that turns from blue to purple as it melts.

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Prep Time (for the ice): 8 hours hours

Total Time: 5 minutes minutes

Servings: 2 cocktails

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Ingredients

• ▢ 2–3 tbsp dried butterfly pea flowers
• ▢ 1½ cups (360ml) boiling water

For the Purple People Eater cocktail

• ▢ ½ cup (120ml) cranberry juice
• ▢ ⅓ cup (80ml) gin
• ▢ 1 fl oz (30ml) St Germain Elderflower liqueur
• ▢ 1 tbsp lemon juice or to taste

For the eyeballs

• ▢ 4 fresh or tinned lychee
• ▢ 4 cocktail cherries or blueberries

Instructions 

• First make a pot of butterfly pea flower tea – pour boiling water over the flowers and let it steep until the color is really an intense blue.
  2–3 tbsp dried butterfly pea flowers, 1½ cups (360ml) boiling water
• Leave the tea to cool then freeze to make ice cubes. Once these are solid, crush them in a powerful blender until you have blue crushed ice. You can keep this in a jug in the freezer until you need to use it.
• Shake the cranberry juice, gin, St-Germain and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker half filled with ice.
  ½ cup (120ml) cranberry juice, ⅓ cup (80ml) gin, 1 fl oz (30ml) St Germain, 1 tbsp lemon juice
• Fill two glasses with ice cubes and then divide the cocktail between the glasses.
• Top with the blue crushed ice which will gradually turn purple as it melts!
• Place cocktail cherries (or blueberries!) inside fresh or tinned lychee to create the eyeballs and thread them on a cocktail stick to garnish.
  4 fresh or tinned lychee, 4 cocktail cherries

Notes

Make the ice ahead: the blue crushed ice keeps in the freezer, so make it a day or two before your party and just shake, pour and top on the night.

Deeper purple: the color change comes from acidity, so add a little extra lemon juice for a more vivid purple.

Spooky glassware: serve it in skull cocktail glasses and drip some edible fake blood around the rim for extra drama.

Nutrition

Calories: 205kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 2mg | Potassium: 41mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 27IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 9mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutritional information is always approximate, and will depend on quality of ingredients and serving sizes.

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