Bonfire Night Food – What Goes With What?

Everybody loves wrapping up warm and grabbing their SPAR-klers on Bonfire Night, but this chilly November night requires warm drinks and snacks to make the party last even longer!

Check out our super-easy Bonfire Night food ideas, guaranteed to keep your guests warm and well-fed. As well as some flaming marvellous bonfire food, we’ve also got some ideas on how to deliver some sweet heat in your Bonfire Night drinks too. Best of all, you won’t have to ‘fawke’ out too much either, with great bonfire deals on offer at your local convenience store.

Hot Toddy & Toffee Apples

There’s nothing like a warming blend of whiskey and honey to keep the cold out. Would you ever have guessed a cup of hot toddy goes incredibly well with the sharp citric notes and sugary crunch of a toffee apple?

To make your hot toddy, simply mix whisky, hot water, honey syrup and cloves in a cup or glass, and stir until the mixture is perfectly blended. If you use cloves, remove them and squeeze in a drop of lemon juice, before decorating with a cinnamon stick for a finishing touch. For a few less traditional ideas, check out our 5 Hot Toddy recipes you have to try.

Making toffee apples is similarly easy, and a fundamental element of bonfire night food. Gather as many apples as you wish to make, wash them and remove the stalks, instead replacing them with lolly sticks or skewers.

Simmer some demerara sugar, butter and golden syrup in a pan with some boiling water, then add cider vinegar for a tangy punch. Boil at a high temperature until the mixture begins to resemble toffee.

Once your mixture has reached this point, you can dip your apples. If the mixture doesn’t cover the apple, use a spoon to help. Place your toffee apples on a lined baking tray and wait for them to set.

This is great for all the family – a delicious and warming Bonfire Night drink for grown-ups, and a sugary snack for the kids!

Mexican Hot Chocolate & Chilli Con Carne

Chilli con carne is definitely up there with the best winter-warming meals of all time. Best served with piping hot rice, this classic dish allows you to get creative in time for Bonfire Night. You can opt for a pre-made jar of Uncle Ben’s chilli sauce and add your own spices, or you can start from scratch.

Mix minced beef with your chilli sauce in a frying pan, pressing it with your wooden spoon to break up any lumps. As the meat starts to turn brown in places, add in a hint of paprika and some ground cumin, or to really heat things up, why not chuck in some hot chilli flakes? 5 minutes before the end, add your kidney beans.

Serve with plain boiled rice and you can rest assured your guests won’t go hungry! All they need to complete this succulent dish is a beverage of a similar nature, but what goes with chilli con carne?

For a fiery twist on a classic Bonfire Night drink, ever tried Mexican hot chocolate?

You’ll need:

• 120ml of whole milk
• 1½ tsp of ground cinnamon
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 1.5tsp of ground nutmeg
• ¼ tsp of cayenne pepper
• 170g chocolate chips
• 25g cocoa powder

Whisk your milk, nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla extract in a saucepan over a medium-high heat. Add the chocolate and keep stirring until it has melted.

Simmer on a low heat for five minutes and serve as you wish! Not only does this hot drink settle those sweet after-dinner cravings, but it also complements the chilli con carne perfectly!

Pumpkin Spice Latte & Pulled Pork Sliders

It’s time to combine your favourite seasonal Starbucks offering with some mouth-wateringly tasty carbs!

For your pumpkin spice latte, heat up milk, pumpkin purée and sugar in a saucepan. Swap to almond or coconut milk for an even creamier taste.

Once this mixture is boiling nicely, throw in vanilla extract, pumpkin pie spices and coffee granules. Serve your mixture and add some squirty cream as a nice topper.

Sounds incredible, but what goes with this?

It needs to be something packed with big flavour, that is simple to eat for the mitten wearing crowd. So, how about pulled pork sliders?

The marinade itself is deliciously flavoursome – mix chopped onion and garlic, tabasco, English mustard powder, paprika, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, treacle, brown sugar and sea salt in a blender until it is fully combined.

Transfer your pork shoulder into a large pan and cover in the marinade, leaving it for 2 hours in the fridge. Once this has chilled for 2 hours or more (overnight is fine if you make this late at night), place the pan on a high heat and add water until it just covers the meat. Once boiling, reduce to simmer and cover the pan, cooking for 90 minutes.

Once cooked (make sure the pork is easy to pull apart with a fork), you can stuff some floury white rolls with this enticing filling, adding barbecue sauce if you see fit. You can even toast the rolls prior to adding the pork for added crispiness.

Are you ready to get creative in the kitchen? Fire up your imagination with our  delicious and simple Bonfire Night food and drinks. Visit your nearest convenience store today to make sure your Bonfire Night party goes off with a bang – grab all the ingredients and extra bits you need for this year’s Guy Fawkes night!