The Dumb Supper

Halloween is known as a time when the veil between our world and the afterlife is the thinnest. It is the night when spirits and ancestors return to our world and sometimes speak to us. The idea of a 'dumb' supper is to be silent so that we may hear these messages.

There are variations of dumb suppers as well. Some choose to make it a part of the regular evening meal, while others plan a more elaborate occasion. Traditionally a place is set at the table for someone who has passed. Sometimes, if there is more than once ancestor being honored, an entire seperate table is laid out altogether. The meal itself is also a matter of taste. In my experience dishes are served that the departed once enjoyed. Of course, during the actual meal the idea is to remain silent, so that we may recieve any messages of wisdom or comfort being sent to us by those that have passed. Once the meal is finished any plates laid out for the departed are left out overnight, preferably outside.

The Festival of the Dead Salem, MA
http://www.festivalofthedead.com/dumbsupper.html


A traditional treat you can make for your own dumb supper are soul cakes. There are a variety of recipes but here are a few simple ones you can try for yourself:

Quickie Shortbread Soul Cakes1 stick of butter, softened
4 TBSP sugar
1 1/2 cups flour

Cream together the butter and sugar. Use a flour sifter to add the flour to the bowl, and mix until smooth. Divide the dough into two parts, and shape each half into a flat circle about half an inch thick. Put them on an ungreased baking sheet and poke lines with the tines of a fork, making eight seperate wedges in each cake. Bake for 25 minutes or until light brown at 350 degrees.

Buttery Soul Cakes2 sticks of butter, softened
3 1/2 cups flour, sifted
1 cup of sugar
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. saffron
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. allspice
2 eggs
2 tsp. malt vinegar
Powdered  sugar

Cut the butter into the flour with a large fork. Mix in the sugar, nutmeg, saffron, cinnamon and allspice. Lightly beat eggs, and add to flour mixture. Add malt vinegar. Mix until you have a stiff dough. Knead for a while then roll out until 1/4" thick. Use a floured glass to cut out 3 circles. Place on greased baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees. Sprinkle with powdered sugar while cakes are still warm.

Irish Soul Cakes
4 cups of flour
1 packet active dry yeast
1 cup of milk
2 TBSP butter
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of lemon zest
1 1/4 cups of golden raisins

Cream yeast with 1 tsp. sugar and 1 tsp. milk, let it get frothy. Blend flour, spices and salt together, then cut in butter. Add the res of the sugar to the flour mix and blend. Add milk and beaten egg onto yeast mixture; combine with flour mixture. Beat until stiff. Fold in raisins and zest, cover with a damp cloth and let rise. Divide in two, place each half in greased 7" round pan. Cover, let rise again for 30 minutes. Bake 1 hour at 400 degrees.

Trick & Treating in America

September has hardly begun, yet your little one insists on telling you exactly what he would like to be for Halloween this year. You would stop to listen except the costume idea changes from minute to minute and you just won’t bother to keep up. But one thought quickly passes through your mind, “Please pick a costume that is either easy to make or cheap to buy!” As much fun as Halloween is, it does become less fun when you’re spending the better part of your evenings creating octopus legs from papier-mâché or wiring a cardboard box with lights that ‘really work’ for a robot.

Especially on the off-chance your little one decides to change his mind again. (I distinctly remember a neighborhood girl sobbing as she went from house to house because she did NOT want to be kangaroo anymore. Her mother’s only response was “It took me two weeks, you’re wearing it!”)

Taking a child Trick or Treating can be an enjoyable tradition or exhausting hard work. I guess it all depends on the child really. But once upon a time, during Halloween’s humble beginnings here in America, it was actually quite necessary.

In the 1910’s, American children amused themselves during Halloween by pranking their neighbors. Tipping over outhouses, soaping windows, egging houses and all other forms of ‘harmless’ vandalism. However, many towns and cities were tired of putting up with these tricks and some actually banned Trick or treating altogether.

Anoka, Minnesota, now known to be the Halloween Capital of the World, devised a clever way to keep the Treating tradition without the Tricks:

"In September of 1920, the Anoka Commercial Club and Anoka Kiwanis Club organized its first Halloween committee. For weeks they planned a children’s’ costume parade and bonfire. Participants included local and neighboring bands, drum corps, the Anoka police and fire departments, the Kiwanis club, the Commercial Club, and the Anoka National Guard; all working together to make the evening a success. Afterward, hundreds of bags of popcorn, candy, peanuts and other treats were given away to the children who marched in the parade.

By the 1930s, the festivities had expanded as had the attendance at the parades. There were over 2,000 costumed children marching down Main Street. It was estimated that 20,000 spectators lined the streets to watch this night-time spectacle. In 1937, 12-year-old, Harold Blair, donning a sweater embellished with a Halloween Capital insignia, carried with him to Washington, D.C. a proclamation naming Anoka the Halloween Capital of the World."

This tradition still stands today and the festivities have grown considerably. Even now if you visit their website, Anoka has activities and events already planned for Halloween of 2011.

It goes to show that when faced with a problem, you don’t need to cut the fun for everyone.  All you need to do is throw a parade and bonfire kick-ass enough to distract the local hoodlums.

But in all seriousness I applaud Anoka, Minnesota for not letting a few pranks ruin the awesome fun that is Halloween.

If you’re interested in joining Anoka for the 2011 Halloween Festival, here are some of the activities/events you can expect:

The Orange Tie Ball
Pumpkin Carving ContestHalloween Capital of the World Open House
Halloween House Decorating Contest
Halloween Wine Tasting & Rib Contest
Spooktacular Carnival

For a complete list of events see the link below. (Honestly I got pretty excited about the Wine Tasting & Rib Contest.)**

Anoka Halloween Parade & Festival http://anokahalloween.com/events.php

**For my wine drinking readers, could you even tell me what kind of wine you would serve with ribs?
Or is it just my pre-conceived southern notion that ribs should be consumed with beer? Lol.

All information and credit: “Anoka: Halloween Capital of the World”, The History of Anoka Halloween, 2011
http://anokahalloween.com/history.php

Welcome, Dear Reader

What is it about Halloween?
Is it the idea of playing pretend, hiding behind paint or a mask and letting your cares slip away? Is it the haunting suspense? Is someone lying in wait to jump out and frighten me to humiliation? Is it the comfort of tradition? Seeing the little ghouls, superheroes and witches parade through the neighborhoods with their open bags like greedy little mouths. Is it the gothic romance? Ravens and black lace, silver candleabras and lovable villains. Or maybe the stories? Legends of headless horsemen, eerie warnings from beyond the grave, the cautionary tales of local abandoned houses and hospitals.

Whatever the fascination or reason, Halloween touches us in one way or another. We have our customs, our favorite treats and concoctions we reserve for this time of year. A box or two, or three, of decorations and knick-knacks kept safe until we feel that first real September chill. We have our annual gatherings that we attend or throw, whether it's for the entire family, or the kind that calls for a babysitter.

In this blog I hope to bring a little something for every kind of Halloween lover. Stories, history, recipes, creative ideas, as well as share my own traditions and customs. I also encourage you, the reader, to do the same.

Halloween is for everyone and so is this blog.