Are pumpkins passé? We understand. Instead of forcing yourself to peer at a grinning jack-o-lantern, or resorting to appallingly old-fashioned candles, why not set some nuts on fire?
If you’re huddling in the dark as Halloween approaches, and you need some produce to set on fire in order to appropriately light your house, why settle for tired old pumpkins? There’s no reason you shouldn’t move on to trendier food to set alight. Instead of lighting your seance or ouija board session with pumpkins filled with candles, try lighting them with brazil nuts.
Nuts are a lot more combustible than most people think. In fact many nuts, especially pistachios, are considered dangerous cargo because they can spontaneously combust. The oils inside them catch fire. Relatively few nuts, though, stay lit as steadily as brazil nuts. You can literally light them with a lighter and watch them burn for minutes at a time. If you have time this weekend, skewer a newly-shelled brazil nut on a bent paper clip and watch it burn. You can also try mashing it up and lighting the mash on fire. Just be sure to have a lot of water on hand. Do it in the bath.
