This spooky and mysterious black magic martini is made with just 4 ingredients (including optional garnishes) and is absolutely perfect for Halloween! Stir in edible luster dust to give your vodka martini eerie and mystical swirls!
This is one of my Drink recipes I know you’ll want to keep on hand!
Who’s ready for Halloween? It’s such a fun time of year for people of all ages, and it’s coming up fast!
Plus, some of the spookiest and coolest cocktails are made for Halloween. Like this Black Magic Martini… I mean just look at those eerie and mystifying swirls.
This is a vodka martini recipe, so it’s definitely a strong drink that’s made in the typical way (with only alcohols, no mixers).
However, if you’re not looking for a strong drink, in the “variations of this recipe” section further down below I’ve shared some mixer ideas you can add to reduce the strength.
Luster dust is added to the martini so when stirred, red and gold is swirled throughout, giving it the perfect Halloween look.
Just make sure the luster dust you buy is food-grade and edible, and get ready for a spooky drink!
What do I need to make this recipe?
- Black vodka – Blavod vodka is naturally black in color (so no additives give it that distinct black color), and tastes slightly like dark berries with hints of anise and clove.
- Raspberry liqueur – Chambord is rich, sweet (but not overly so), and has a strong berry flavor.
- Luxardo cherries – these slightly nutty and boldly fruity cherries taste more like a fresh cherry than those overly red maraschino cherries. Luxardos are also smaller and much darker in color, which works well for the aesthetic of this cocktail.
- Luster dust (not pictured) – this edible dust is what makes those incredibly mysterious swirls! I find luster dust on Amazon, as well as in craft stores like Jo-Ann.
How to make a black magic martini?
This is just an overview; the full ingredients and directions are in the recipe card toward the bottom of this post.
- Chill glasses.
- Add cocktail ingredients to a cocktail shaker that’s filled with some ice.
- Cover and shake for about 15 seconds.
- Pour into serving glasses.
- Garnish and serve!
Helpful Tip!
Garnishes (like the luster dust and luxardo cherries) are always optional, but with drinks they add such a fun and bar/restaurant-style look.
Variations of this recipe
- Black vodka – you can use any brand of black vodka that you can find. For me, Blavod was the easiest to find, and it tastes great with the raspberry liqueur. In a pinch, you can use your favorite vodka and add a drop or two of black food coloring.
- Raspberry liqueur – just like with the vodka, feel free to use any brand you like best. We prefer Chambord Black Raspberry Liqueur for it’s flavor and color.
- Mixer – if you prefer to add a little mixer, you could try adding some pomegranate or cranberry juice.
- Other liqueur – in addition to the black raspberry, you could try adding a splash of an orange liqueur (such as blue curacao).
- Sugared rim – I love to add fun little flairs to simple recipes like this, and a sugared rim is a great addition! You can use granulated sugar or be a little extra and use a sanding sugar (I love to use a black sugar). Add some of the sugar to a plate. Run a bit of water, simple syrup, or an orange wedge around the rim of the glass, then dip the rim in the sugar.
FAQ’s
Thankfully no! Remember that scene in The Patriot where the two teens drink tea that has ink in it and they have solid black mouths? Don’t worry, that won’t happen at all! There’s a small change it might settle in the cracks of your lips (just like a dark red wine can do), but is easily cleaned off if that happens.
This recipe is very easy to scale up; just figure out how many drinks you’ll want, and multiply the ingredient amounts by that number. So for example, if you wanted 8 drinks, you’d need 64 oz black vodka and 16 oz raspberry liqueur. For more info, please see the “chef tips” section of the recipe below.
Making a black vodka martini ahead of time
If you’d like, feel free to make this drink up to 24 hours ahead of time!
Just keep it covered in a pitcher or jar in the refrigerator. When ready to serve, add it to a cocktail shaker with some ice and give it a good shaking.
Pour over ice in the serving glasses, top with garnishes, then serve.
Storage
Any leftover cocktails should be stored in the refrigerator and enjoyed within 1-2 days.
You’ll want to fill a cocktail shaker with ice and give the leftover cocktail a quick shake to mix it all back up before serving.
More Halloween Drink Recipes:
My Favorite Cocktail Shaker!
This shaker comes with a jigger and mixing spoon, and is a large 24 oz size! Plus, it’s a pretty inexpensive set which has held up well over the years.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
Martini
- 8 oz black vodka
- 2 oz raspberry liqueur
Garnishes
- edible red and gold luster dust
- luxardo cherries on a cocktail pick
Instructions
Make martini
- Add two martini glasses to the freezer to chill.
- To a cocktail shaker, add ice, black vodka, and raspberry liqueur. Cover and shake well, for about 15 seconds.
Serve
- Remove glasses from the freezer, then pour the martini from the cocktail shaker, dividing the contents equally between the two glasses.
- Sprinkle with luster dust (I recommend adding it one pinch at a time), stir well, and enjoy!
Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!
Chef Tips
- This recipe makes 2 (5 oz each) cocktails, but is easily scaled up to make a larger amount.
- The color and look of the cocktail will vary, depending on the colors and amount of luster dust used, as well as if it’s been recently stirred.
- If your cocktail just looks solid black, and you’ve added the luster dust, just give it a stir and watch the “magic” happen.
- Instead of shaking the martini, you can stir the martini with ice and a long cocktail spoon before pouring it into a glass.
Larger Batch:
- This recipe is very easy to scale up; just figure out how many drinks you’ll want, and multiply the ingredient amounts by that number. So for example, if you wanted 8 drinks, you’d need 64 oz black vodka and 16 oz raspberry liqueur. For more info, please see the “chef tips” section of the recipe below.
- For a party, you may not want to use the cocktail shaker for each drink (since that takes some time). So you can add the black vodka and raspberry liqueur to a large pitcher. Stir well, cover, and refrigerate for several hours (until well chilled). Then stir, pour into glasses, add luster dust and serve.
- Or if you’d still like to use the cocktail shaker (it does make a great presentation!), still combine everything in the pitcher and chill it, but pour some from the pitcher into an ice-filled cocktail shaker and shake up the individual drinks (just make sure you give the contents of the pitcher a good stir before pouring it into the cocktail shaker).
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Marcella Gorak says
Bought the exact ingredients, (pricey).
My cocktail looked nothing like the picture. ☹️ Could there be something missing?
The Chunky Chef says
This recipe was shot with moody lighting, so unless you have the same lighting set up, it won’t look exactly the same. I assure you nothing is missing from the ingredients section though.
Margaret Kennedy says
Looking for black vodka. Apparently this is an issue in the US. Please help!
The Chunky Chef says
Unfortunately I can’t control whether black vodka is available near you, but as mentioned in the post above the recipe, in a pinch you can use regular vodka and add some black food coloring.
Jacqueline Mendoza OBrien says
What color luster dust?
The Chunky Chef says
As mentioned in the recipe, I use red and gold, but you can use any color you’d like.
zoe levenson says
Hi! Can you make this non alcoholic?
The Chunky Chef says
Not really, as martinis are pure alcohol. This drink only has two main ingredients, and both are alcohol, so you could try to swap them for various juices, but I haven’t tested this.
Alex says
Ma’am… this is literally a cocktail. Bit like asking if bacon can be vegan
Joandearc1431 says
I’m wondering about the glasses and garnish screwers you used. Can you state where to find these items?
The Chunky Chef says
Unfortunately those were a gift, so I’m not sure where they could be purchased.
Catalina says
Oh my goodness! This Martini is so awesome and chic! Must make it for Halloween!
Sandra says
What a gorgeous drink! This should be on our Halloween list!
katerina says
Yes, please! This looks fabulous!
Erin says
Looks absolutely fantastic! You had me on this!
Beth says
This cocktail looks and sounds absolutely amazing. We’re having a Halloween party, and this is going on the menu!