Skip to main content

Soul Cakes for the Dearly Departed


Halloween is one of the biggest commercial holidays in the U.S., second only to Christmas. Every year, billions of dollars are spent on Halloween candy, decorations, and costumes. This made me wonder what the origins of the holiday are, and as I did research I found an excellent recipe along the way.

Halloween’s roots can be traced back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, which was observed on October 31. Samhain (pronounced “sah-win”) marked the end of harvest season and the beginning of winter. It was also a time to honor ancestors who have passed on. It was believed that the veil between the world of the living and the spirit world was almost nonexistent at this time. Samhain was celebrated with bonfires and feasting. Revelers would cook food in honor of the dead and leave food outside their homes as offerings for the spirits. People would wear costumes to ward off ghosts under the logic that if you looked like a ghost, they wouldn’t bother you. Celebrators were also known to walk through their villages singing songs or reciting poetry in exchange for food.

During the Middle Ages, Catholicism came to the Celtic regions, and Catholic traditions began to blend with Celtic ones. In the 8th Century, November 1 was designated by the Catholic Church as All Saints’ Day, a day to honor the saints. In the 10th Century, November 2 was designated as All Souls’ Day, a day to honor the dead and pray for their souls. The evening before All Saints’ Day was known as All Hallows Eve (hallowed means “holy”). 

The tradition of “souling” came about when the poor of the village would go to the homes of the wealthy on All Hallows Eve. The “soulers” would beg for food, and the wealthy families would give them pastries known as “soul cakes.” In exchange, the beggars would pray for the souls of the family’s deceased relatives. It was believed that if the wealthy did not give out soul cakes, their homes would be cursed. The soulers would sometimes carry a hollowed-out turnip lantern with a candle that symbolized a soul trapped in purgatory and would wear costumes as a tribute to saints or to imitate spirits.This custom is still practiced today in some parts of England as well as in Portugal and the Phillippines.


Recipes for soul cakes vary, but they are usually round and flavored with spices like cinnamon and ginger. They usually resemble a cookie or a small scone. To make my soul cakes, I based them off of an Americanized recipe with powdered sugar sprinkled on top to give them a ghostly/saintly appearance.


Soul Cakes

*Based on a recipe from Catholic Cuisine

Makes 20 cakes

Ingredients:

1/2 c. butter

1/2 c. margarine

1 c. sugar

3 3/4 c. flour

1 c. sugar

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. ginger

1 tsp. allspice

2 eggs

2 tsp. apple cider vinegar

6 tbsp. milk

powdered sugar, to sprinkle on top

Directions:

1. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

2. Cut butter and margarine into flour. I do this by "grating" the butter and margarine with a cheese grater and then blending it into the flour with a pastry blender.  

3. Blend in the sugar, nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon and allspice.  4. In a separate bowl beat eggs, vinegar and milk together.  5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix. 6. Kneed thoroughly to form a stiff dough. Add a little more milk if needed. 7. Preheat oven to 350 F. 8. Roll out to a 1/4 inch thickness and cut out 3 inch circles with a cookie cutter or glass. 9. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. 10. Sprinkle with powdered sugar while still warm.

Sources:

Sherry Kuehl, “The Cost Is Spooky: Halloween Is the Second Biggest Commercial Holiday in the U.S.,” The Kansas City Star (October 4, 2023).

T. Susan Chang, “Soul Cakes: Hallowed Offerings for Hungry Ghosts,” NPR/WBEZ Chicago (October 24, 2007).

History.com editors, “Halloween 2024,” History.com (October 29, 2024).

“Soul Cakes: The Original Halloween Treat,” Catholic Cuisine (October 26, 2011).

Ash Elding, “How to Celebrate Samhain: The Witch’s New Year,” The Pagan Grimoire (October 11, 2022).

“All Souls’ Day: Traditions, Legends, and Beliefs,” Farmer’s Almanac.

“Soul Cake” and "All Souls' Day," Wikipedia.

“What Does the Word “Halloween” Mean?” Dictionary.com, (October 20, 2023).

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Kolaczki: A Polish Chicago Tradition Loved by All

  Kolaczki (pronounced ko-lach-ki ) are a delicious Polish cookie made with dough and filling. If you’re a Chicagoan, chances are you’ve already heard of or even tasted kolaczki. That’s because Chicago has a large Polish population, which accounts for the large number of Polish bakeries, restaurants, grocery stores, and delis across the metropolitan area. Kolaczki can even be found in the bakery section at local mainstream grocery stores like Jewel and Mariano's. According to the Back Home: Polish Chicago exhibit at the Chicago History Museum, which runs until June 2024, Polish immigration in Chicago happened in three major waves. The first wave started in the 1800s and lasted until the 1910s. This group of Polish immigrants was largely economically motivated, seeing Chicago as a land of opportunity with its stockyards, tanneries, and steel mills. The next wave happened in the late 1940s and 1950s and consisted of Poles displaced by World War II. Eventually, so many Poles settle
Post a Comment
Read more

The Original World's Fair Brownie

  The brownie was invented at the Palmer House hotel as a portable treat for fairgoers at Chicago’s 1893 World’s Fair. Real estate tycoon Potter Palmer, owner of the Palmer House Hotel, was an investor in the World’s Columbian Exposition. His wife Bertha Palmer chaired the Board of Lady Managers for the World’s Columbian Exposition and was in charge of the Women’s Pavilion. Bertha asked the hotel’s pastry chef to make a chocolate cake-like dessert that would be easy to box and transport to the fair, and thus the brownie was born. The portable chocolatey treat was included in box lunches served at the hotel to fairgoers. Many other new foods were also introduced at the Columbian Exposition, including Quaker Oats, Aunt Jemima Pancake Mix, Cream of Wheat, Shredded Wheat, and Wrigley’s Juicy Fruit and Spearmint Gum. Fairgoers were given a box of Cracker Jack upon entering the grounds. Pabst beer won an award at the fair, which led them to change their name to Pabst Blue Ribbon. And two A
1 comment
Read more

Deep Love for Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza

There’s no question that deep-dish pizza is one of Chicago's most iconic foods, loved by tourists and locals alike. But who exactly invented it? It turns out the details are a bit murky. Let's begin with what we do know. The first establishment to serve deep-dish pizza was a place simply called The Pizzeria that opened in 1943 on the corner of Ohio and Wabash. The restaurant would later be known as Pizzeria Uno and is now known as Uno Pizzeria and Grill. What we don’t know is who exactly perfected the recipe for deep-dish pizza. The Pizzeria's owner Ike Sewell and his business partner Ric Riccardo are commonly credited with inventing the dish, but we don’t know for sure if they actually got their hands dirty in the kitchen. Adolpho “Rudy” Malnati Sr., who was manager of The Pizzeria, his son Lou, who worked as a bartender there, and Alice May Redmond, a cook at the establishment, are other possibilities. But whoever invented it, folks loved it, and Chicago pizzerias have
1 comment
Read more