Samhain celebration & Recipes

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 01 Oct 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Sorceress_Jade	01 Oct 2002
I'll admit that unlike the majority of the pagan community I celebrate the Solar holiday's above the tweeners that are more representative of the seasons, however autumn is simply my favorite time of year. First and foremost I would love to know some seasonal recipes that you all have. I've spent hours looking up pumpkin recipes recently, and I would really like some drinks and things like that as well. I’ll even share a few of the ones I’ve gathered if anyone’s interested. I’d also like some other foods with seasonal ingredients and colors. Plus, I’d like to know some of the decorating and celebrating that you all do. Not only on Samhain, but just for Autumn in general. The weather is finally starting to turn here and it’s got me all giddy, bear with me! :D

Phoenix	01 Oct 2002
Well, this is one sabbat that I do plan on celebrating. I want to use a spread form Tarot for All Seasons.

ChrisTheObscure	01 Oct 2002
Autumn has always been my favourite season, and I've been drawn greatly lately to the cycle of life and rebirth, so I intend to do my first "big" pagan ritual on or around Samhain...if possible, I intend to rent a car and drive up to the north shore of Lake Superior and have an initiation ritual there. It was an experience I had up there earlier this year that caused me to make the decision to take the plunge into paganism :) If I end up making this big move and I can find a way to do it, I might do something symbolising the death of my old life here in Minnesota, and the beginning of a new one. I also intend to continue my tradition of making irish soda bread for friends and family.

Rhiannon	01 Oct 2002
This year I plan on celebrating Samhain by honoring all the loved ones who have recently (in the past few years) departed. I plan on casting a circle, lighting a large candle (for ancestors in general) and lighting smaller ones for individuals that I knew personally, including lost friends. I have offered for a few of my friends to join in this ritual with me, as I think they need some healing as well. I'm also toying with the idea of some sort of dedication ceremony... not sure yet. Some of my fave recipes for this time of year are zucchini bread, banana walnut breat, pumpkin molasses cake and pumpkin pie. Also can't resist some caramel apples! I'll try to find some of these recipes and post them for you. As far as decorating goes, I decorate for Halloween and then I decorate (on Nov. 1st) for Thanksgiving, and on Dec. 1st for Yule/Christmas. R :)

Violet Gargoyle	01 Oct 2002
Last year, I used the pulp from the pumpkins that we carved all the jack-o-lanterns from and used it to make pumpkin wine, it turned out great! This year now that the wine has aged a bit, I am going to serve it with hubby and a couple of friends that we camp with (we go camping every Halloween and again at Beltaine). So here's what I plan: a glass of pumpkin wine, and beef stew cooked in a dutch oven an served in a hollowed out pumpkin (gives it a bit of neat flavor). All while swapping stories around the campfire. Dessert- Spiced Pumpkin cookies

tigerlily	02 Oct 2002
Hmm.... I really don't like Samhain, because we're a bit (ha!) cross with the rest of our relatives, alive or dead ... and since we're the only ones sensitive enough to feel the deceised hanging around at this time of the year, it's a bit tense - we make sure not to look into mirrors or other shiny surfaces after dark ;) Seriously, I have no desire to invite any of my dead ancestors - those I only heard of were no better than those I knew while they were still alive.

Sorceress_Jade	23 Oct 2002
Sorry to get back to this so late, I've been away. Thanx all for the replies, and Violet, that sounds FABULOUS. I think stew is an excellent idea and i wish i could make wine (or even buy it for that matter :( ) Some day perhaps I'll learn. If anyone else is searching for recipes try www.foodtv.com they have a search engine and you can put in an ingredient or a type of food and a list will come up. Lost of interesting pumpkin recipes. As for myself, I'll be doing the usual american halloween fare. Either morticia or a gypsy, i think i'm leaning more toward the gypsy (it'd give me a reason to play with my cards all day in public ;D ) Haven't decided yet weather going to a party or trick or treating or what. I wish you all the best in your celebrations, and if I'm correct... happy new year? (pagan style at least)

Moonklad	23 Oct 2002
Hey, I would LOVE to learn to make pumpkin wine. Can you tell me how you did it, share a recipe?? I am going to be carving alot of pumpkins so I should have plenty of pulp. Please let me know! ty, Moonklad

Major Tom	24 Oct 2002
I found a bunch of pumpkin recipes on http://www.bbc.co.uk/food They have a great search facility where you can enter up to 3 ingredients! I entered pumpkin and got over 100 recipes. :) They didn't have a pumpkin pie recipe though... can anyone help me out?

Riversea	24 Oct 2002
We will probably fondue. It gives us a reason to hang out downstairs for most of the evening (the better to catch unwary trick-or-treaters!) Our doorbell doesn't work, and some of those kids have inaudible knocks! :) I also probably will make a non-alcholic mulled cider. I have a recipe that I just love, though it is kind of a pain to make. It requires grating sugar cubes on orange peels. After the tenth or so sugar cube, it gets to be a bit tedious. I'll probably do some sort of circle-casting, though I have to work the following morning, so waiting until Landon goes to bed (like I usually do) won't work this year. I may just need to do it during the day. I'll also make a trip to the old pioneer graveyard during the day, and leave some sort of offering. An apple or something along that line. Landon and I also usually exchange gifts, too!

Kiama	24 Oct 2002
I got this one out of 'Pagan Feasts' by... Oops, forgotten their name. I'll edit into it later. Roast Pumpkin Seeds, for after yu've hollowed out the pumpkin and don't know what to do with the leftovers! You need: Pumpkin Seeds, Salt. Just put the seeds on a baking tray, sprinkle with salt, and bake in a moderate overn for around 15-20 minutes. Simple! And vegan friendly too! (My Samhain feast will include a vegan, so I'm trying to cater for him aswell...) Kiama

napaea	24 Oct 2002
Riversea...thanks for the idea about the graveyard! there is a beautiful one around here, huge ( i've always loved graveyards) and i will try to remember to do that, i love the gifting idea. i too would be interested in seeing this pumpkin wine recipe! a friend of mine makes lemon balm wine, which i haven't tried yet. i havent' established cooking rituals for Samhein yet, but this year i will probably make my grandmothers famous/delicious bran bread. used to make it all the time during the holidays, and haven't had the recipe in so long. since she passed about 3 years ago in October, i think it appropriate. but the camping and stew sure sound good! too cold to camp here though! KIAMA: you can also soak the seeds overnight in saltwater to let them absorb some of the saltiness. yummmmmy...

Riversea	24 Oct 2002
Last year was the first year that I did the graveyard offering. I remember I was a bit rushed, and got a bit muddy tromping around the place. I'm going to try to be better prepared this year, though there is not much to be done about the mud if it rains. ;) The graveyard is quite old, and not very large, only about a city block. There also aren't many headstones (50?), even though I read in the local paper that there were hundreds of unmarked graves there. There is a historical marker in the middle of the cemetery. That is where I left my gifts. Here's an interesting tidbit- a photo of that Dave of ghostweb took at this particular cemetery. (It's the one on the bottom right) http://www.ghostweb.com/portal.html It does look like droplets of rain (certainly not unheard of in Oregon!), but accordingly, they have fairly strict protocol when it comes to ghost photography. So, it is not supposed to be rain or dust. Kind of an interesting site, btw. I tried to leave things that would biodegrade, and wouldn't harm any animals that might decide to take a nibble. I was tempted to leave chocolate (I've read that is a popular offering to spirits) but then worried about it being poisonious to dogs and other animals. So, I went with an apple. I also took a drink offering. That, I poured at the base of the marker. I could have used a paper cup, but I didn't want to litter! LOL :)

Violet Gargoyle	24 Oct 2002
Easy Version (Those who have never made wine before- least amount of equipment): http://www.red4.co.uk/Recipes/pumpkin-wine.htm Moderate Version (Those who have made some wine before): http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/reques53.asp The "Screw The Recipe" Version (VG's method of choice :D) Plan on 4 pounds of pumpkin pulp (anything on the inside of the pumpkin) per gallon. About 3 pounds of sugar OR honey per gallon (and save more for later if you want it sweeter) A stick of cinnimon for each gallon. A Wee bit of ground nutmeg. All the various wine making supplies. BTW- I am camping in the Northeast US, so it gets pretty cold here this time of year too, so thats why we need the warming wines and ciders around that fire :)

Sorceress_Jade	25 Oct 2002
Wow, I liked the style for that easy one. It's too bad that it's far too late make wine for samhain... however, I did find this link for anyone who's interested. The ruhbarb and appricot ones look interesting as well. http://www.cranberrywine.com/pumpkinwine.html I'm gonna try and get the 'holiday' one for yule, sounds perfect. :)

Rhiannon	25 Oct 2002
The kid in me just can't help it. You have to have a disgusting jello mold. it's just not halloween with out it. http://www.yankeehalloween.com/qwiggle.html be careful, there's music! R :)

VGimlet	26 Oct 2002
Back in the old days, when I carved pumpkins (one year I grew them and had about 30...it was very cool, but a LOT of work) we would always make different flavors of roasted pumpkin seeds. Plain salt, Garlic and butter, worcestershire sauce....yum. I also like Pan de Muerto (bread of the dead); there are tons of recipes out there for it. It's too much work for me now, but I used to make it all the time from a recipe my Spanish teacher gave me. :D So, here's one that seems pretty close. http://www.sat.lib.tx.us/html/DeadDay/receta.htm

The Samhain celebration & Recipes thread was originally posted on 01 Oct 2002 in the Spirituality board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Spirituality, or read more archived threads.