Film Event: A Witchy Night-In with The Craft: Legacy

It's certainly been an interesting year for film to say the very least. With so many cinemas being closed, it has completely changed the way we've consumed films and enjoyed new releases. Last week saw the release of The Craft: Legacy, available on Download & Keep*, and so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to make an evening of it with Sony Home Entertainment. 

If you've yet heard of The Craft: Legacy, it is a teen supernatural horror and soft sequel to the much-loved 1996 cult classic, The Craft (Andrew Fleming). Similarly to the original, the film follows Lily (Cailee Spaeny), a new student who is welcome in to a group of eclectic, aspiring teenage witches. However, when their powers combine, they get more than they bargained for. 

Much like many Blumhouse horrors, The Craft: Legacy is amusing, stylish and easy-viewing but, with  Zoe Lister-Jones in the director's chair, this feature is particularly 'woke'. With four strong females in the lead, the importance of embracing intersectional female power and the dangers of toxic masculinity sit at the forefront of this thoughtful teen narrative; setting it aside from the direct remakes we're so used to seeing. 

Image source - courtesy of Sony Home Entertainment

So, to get in the spirit, Sony Pictures invited me to a special viewing party to celebrate the early release of the film becoming available to Download & Keep (via Apple Store, Prime Video, Sky Store & Google Play).  And if you've not used it before, Download & Keep allows you to buy a digital download of a film, so that you can access it whenever and wherever you want – forever. I find Download & Keep particularly practical and easy as it not only means you can watch it readily on your device whenever you like, but also because the days of having DVDs and Blu-rays cluttering up my home are long since gone. Of course, I still love to have a physical copy of my most beloved TV series and films, but I simply don't have the room to store my hundreds of favourites. 

To add a little magic to our viewing party, we set our trusty Hue bulbs to some witchy colours, lit all the scented candles I could find and prepared some delicious treats. It couldn't be more simple and easy to add a little atmosphere. If you'd like to have your own witchy night-in this weekend, here's a few tips to make things look a little spooky and some simple and fun recipe ideas...

Witch Finger Cream Cakes (Cream Horns) Recipe 

Ingredients

'Witch Finger' Cream Horns for Halloween or witchy themed parties 

For the Pastry:

320g Ready Rolled Puff Pastry

1 Medium Egg

50g Golden Caster Sugar (to sprinkle on the pastry)

To Decorate:

100g cooking chocolate

Halloween or spooky themed sprinkles (optional)

For the Filling:

Whipped cream spray can 

Preparation

Step 1 - Make 6 cone shapes out of sheets of paper, making them a few sheets thick and roughly 15cm long and 3cm diameter. Cover the paper cones in non-stick foil and remove the paper to leave a neat foil cone shape. Alternatively, you may wish to use cream horn moulds, available online or in home good stores.

Step 2 - Unroll your puff pastry and cut length ways into 6 equal strips (roughly 2.5cm wide). I recommend using a pizza cutter to cut the strips of pastry.

Step 3 - Take each strip strip of pastry and, starting at the thin point of the cone, wrap the pastry around the cone, angling the cone slightly so the pastry overlaps itself. Repeat this to create 6 pastry cones, place them a lined baking tray and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Step 4 - Preheat your oven to 200°C/180°C/Gas Mark 6 

Step 5 - Remove your horns from the fridge. Pop your medium egg in a small bowl and beat until all combined. Brush the horns with your beaten egg and sprinkle over the sugar and place back in the baking tray spaced slightly apart as the pastry will puff up as it bakes.

Step 6 - Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and puffed up. Leave to cool on the tray for a further 15-20 minutes. Once the horns have cooled, remove the cone mould very gently (the cones may flake and crumble) 

To Decorate

Step 7 - Now it’s time to get chocolatey - break the cooking chocolate into pieces and place in a microwavable bowl. Melt in the microwave for 30 seconds and then stir, continue to melt in 10 second bursts, stirring between each burst until your chocolate has completely melted. 

Step 8 - One at a time, dip half a pastry horn in the melted chocolate to coat, allow the excess chocolate to drip off and place on some baking parchment. Once each horn is coated in chocolate sprinkle over your chosen decorations and leave to set. Avoid putting them in the fridge as this will cause the chocolate to stick.

For the Filling

Step 9 - Using your whipped cream can, fill each cone with cream and serve immediately! 

For some added witchiness, I also created the little witches brooms above using Reese's miniatures and some pretzel sticks. They're super simple and look great served on a spooky-themed plate. 

Well, that's it for our witchy night-in with The Craft: Legacy. A huge thanks to Sony Home Entertainment for inviting us to join the viewing party - it was the perfect excuse for a spooky film night. For more info on how you can Download & Keep The Craft: Legacy, you can find the Sony Home Entertainment website here.

But tell me, how would you describe your perfect movie night in? Are you excited to see The Craft: Legacy? As always, I love reading your comments so please do lots of lovely ones below. 

Until next time fellow witches, 

*Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post in collaboration with Sony Pictures. As always, all opinions are my own and do not reflect that of the brand.