Soul Cakes Are the Perfect Halloween Treat for the Black Hat Society

Come October 31^st 150 million children (!!!) will venture into the streets, knock expectantly on doors and yell “TRICK OR TREAT!” Yet few people know the dark and winding road this nighttime festival has trod in order to become the second largest American holiday. 

The first celebrations of Halloween began in ancient pre-Christian Celtic Ireland, Scotland and northern France. During that era October 31th celebrated Samhain, a high holy day marked by the nighttime burning of massive bonfires, the wearing of animal skin costumes to frighten away hostile spirits and the offering of food and prayers to the protective spirits of deceased family members. 

These customs continued into the Middle Ages with the previous activities then becoming known as “Mumming”.  Bizarre cloth and straw costumes now replaced the prior animal skin costumes.  Under the growing influence of Christianity, the food, once offered to supportive ancestral spirits, was replaced by soul cakes. 

The poor of each village would visit the estates of the landed gentry and ask for soul cakes. It was expected that, for each small cake they received, they would say a prayer for the soul of a deceased lord of lady. The following song hauntingly captures the feel of that ancient day:

This humbling practice was known as “Souling”. Over the centuries the poor were replaced by the children of the village who by then accepted money and ale in addition to food. In Scotland the tradition shifted somewhat. There the costumed children offered to exchange a song, joke or dance, instead of a prayer, for their treats. They called this custom "guising, hence the modern word "dis-guising". 

In 1605 Guy Fawkes and his fellow Catholic terrorists were caught and executed for attempting to blow up both the Protestant King James I and the entire British Parliament.  His death (or courage, depending on one’s political point of view) is celebrated each November 5^th with raging bonfires, bonfire-themed cupcakes and the request by English children of “a penny for the Guy”, who had to pay for his own execution under 17^th century law. 

All of these traditions came to the United States thanks to immigration which is a constant stream of diversity that has greatly crafted the shape of American history.  Beginning with the Great Potato Famine in 1845, waves of both Irish and Scottish immigrants came to America and brought their October holiday customs with them. 

By the 1920s and into the 1930s, the popular of tricking and treating reached alarming and destructive proportions in America. Vandalism exploded in major urban areas, often prompted by poverty and anger over the inequality of the American dream. 

The sudden involvement of America in World War II after the bombing of Pearl Harbor halted this trend as hundreds of thousands of unemployed young men entered the military and food stuffs, including sugar, were greatly rationed. After the War ended in 1945, many returning GIs had seen enough of conflict and battle to last a life time and were now no longer interested in chaos and destruction. 

Available government housing loans, thanks to the GI bill, enabled the explosion of suburban neighborhoods, populated by happy newlyweds and soon thereafter their two ‘perfect’ children. As candy makers evaluated this new social trend, they quickly understood they were looking a vast and untapped market.

Women had endured the severe shortage of sugar during war years.  Their husbands had ‘dined’ for four years on simplistic K rations. And now there were all those children. In short, it was time to relax, settle into the 1950’s life style promoted by the “Mad Men” of Madison Avenue Ad Agencies and enjoy a ‘new’ holiday based on revamped traditions that were over 2,000 years old. 

Trick or Treating is still part of Halloween in America though more modern (and health-conscious) parents moderate their children’s consumption of sugar. Costumes, both commercially themed and homemade, are still worn and not just by children. On an ever increasing basis, adults are joining in the fun and enjoying fright-themed treats and scary cocktails. 

If you wish, however, to return to the simpler roots of Halloween, consider making your very own soul cakes. Eat them before November 2^nd and you're sure to have good luck all year. Then you'll  know why for over 2,000 years mankind has celebrate the darkening days of Fall each year with fire, fun and friendship. Enjoy and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

SOUL CAKES

Makes 12 to 15 2-inch soul cakes (Eat within 2 days of Baking to Insure Good Luck!)

INGREDIENTS

For the Cakes:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, ground fresh if possible
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, ground fresh if possible
1/2 teaspoon salt
Generous pinch of saffron
1/2 cup milk
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
2 egg yolks
1/2 cup currants

For the Glaze:
1 egg yolk, beaten

DIRECTIONS

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
• Combine the flour, the nutmeg, cinnamon and salt in a small bowl.
• Mix well with a fork.
• Crumble the saffron threads into a small saucepan and heat over low heat just until they become aromatic, taking care not to burn them.
• Add the milk and heat just until hot to the touch. The milk will have turned a bright yellow. Remove from heat.
• Cream the butter and sugar together in a medium bowl with a wooden spoon (or use an electric mixer with the paddle attachment).
• Add the egg yolks and blend in thoroughly with the back of the spoon.
• Add the spiced flour and combine as thoroughly as possible; the mixture will be dry and crumbly.
• One tablespoon at a time, begin adding in the warm saffron milk, blending vigorously with the spoon. When you have a soft dough, stop adding milk; you probably won't need the entire half-cup.
• Turn the dough out onto a floured counter and knead gently, with floured hands, until the dough is uniform.
• Roll out gently to a thickness of 1/2 inch.
• Using a floured 2-inch round cookie or biscuit cutter, cut out as many rounds as you can and set on an ungreased baking sheet. You can gather and re-roll the scraps, gently.
• Decorate the soul cakes with currants.
• Brush cakes  liberally with the beaten egg yolk.
• Bake for 15 minutes, until just golden and shiny.
• Serve warm.

Don't forget to donate to UNICEF this Halloween.

Their great work saves the lives of countless children around the world!

 Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2013

Glenfiddich's New Age of Discovery Whisky Honors American Scots-Irish Traditions

Glenfiddich, Scotland's beloved 125 year old whisky distiller, has just released their Age of Discovery Bourbon Cask Reserve. 

In so doing they are also highlighting a little-known period of history that still influences America's culinary choices and the nation's core beliefs. 

Back in 1610, James of Scotland (the only son of Mary Queen of Scots) became the king of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. A gifted scholar as well as an individual who could curse like a sailor when needed, he faced many problems as a new monarch. Chief among his concerns were unending religious wars as well as disease and poverty within his new kingdom.

Both Ireland and the City of London were proving the most difficult areas to handle. Long-standing hatred between Catholics and Protestants was tearing Ireland apart while London suffered from massive overpopulation and constant outbreaks of the plague.

James decided to address both issues simultaneously with a new policy entitled "Plantation". Impoverished Londoners and land poor Scots from the border region between England and Scotland were offered the opportunity to relocate to Ulster in Northern Ireland.

The Scots, of course, brought with them their strong sense of personal independence as well as their knowledge of whisky distillation. The English, sadly, brought with them their own biases and prejudices against the Scots.

The English, according to the new arrangement, held the rights to the majority of the new land. Their view was that the Scots were merely tenants whose sole function was to farm the owner's vast tracks of land and to fight the deposed and rightly angry Irish when necessary. It was a clear case of “You work and I profit”.

(Of historical note is the fact that this same system would later appear in the American South. And though African slaves would replace the indentured Scots, the name “plantation” would remain unchanged.)

But to return to our story, Scots, needless to say, did not consider this arrangement fair or just. As conditions grew worse over the next hundred years, the Scots, now called the Scots-Irish, found solace in their cherished traditions of music, poetry, clan fellowship and the distillation of fine whiskies.

By 1719 a combination of repressive restrictions against Scots-Irish commerce and a colossal drought that killed nearly all the grazing grass prompted a massive wave of immigration to the New World. In the next 50 years over 200,000 individuals or nearly 1/3 of the entire Scots-Irish population of Ulster immigrated to America.

Welcomed by the religiously tolerate and peaceful Quakers of Pennsylvania, they brought little with them except their love of freedom, their ability to work hard and, when time allowed, the talent to distill whiskey.

Seeking new and unencumbered land, they move out from Pennsylvania towards the American frontier, then defined by the Appalachian Mountains and the distant mighty Mississippi River. As in Ireland, they found they had to fight for the land they had been promised so freely. This time their enemies were not the deposed Irish, but the angry Iroquois and Cherokee Indian Nations. 

Over a 20 year period the new settlers and the regional Native American tribes battled for control of the land. Always ready to adapt, the Scots-Irish quickly copied the effective shoot-and-hide fighting style of their adversaries. Later they would bring this style of combat to Revolutionary War battles, where they comprised the single largest ethnic group fighting the hated always-in-formation British regiments.

Despite war and conflict, the Scots-Irish continued to work and clear fields along the Frontier. Cabins were ebuilt, not with sod as in the Old World, but with strong American White Oak logs cut from the nearby forests.

Stills were also erected because, of course, what was life worth if one could not enjoy a comforting glass (or two) of whiskey at the end of a hard day. In fact, the whiskey produced by the Scots-Irish became so popular among American that it soon replaced British rum as the new nation’s beverage of choice.

Flat bottomed packet boats and later elegant steamboats happily transported thousands of brimming whiskey casks up and down the Mississippi River to a thirsty, ever-expanding young nation.

Yet to achieve the production of their famed beverage, the Scots-Irish had to make two accommodations to the New World. First, they would replace the traditional 100% barley mash used in Scotland and Ireland with one contain 51% American corn. Second, they would age the resulting liquid in ‘fired’ American white oak casks, crafted from wood obtained in the nearby abundant forests.

First produced in the Kentucky county of Bourbon, this uniquely beverage is truly American. Now Glenfiddich has continued that tradition of excellence with their release of the Age of Discovery Bourbon Cask Crafted Single Malt Whisky. Crafted in aged American white oak casks, this stunning whisky has been wood tempered for 19 years and is available only in America and at selected duty-free international airport shops.

Once savored, each glass yields memorable notes of vanilla, fine leather and smooth tobacco tones, which melt into a sweet velvety finish with a final hint of cardamom and nutmeg.

Well worth the $149.99 bottle price, Glenfiddich's new offering may be the ideal gift for the discerning connoisseur this holiday season.

Each bottle can also serve as a reminder at America is blessed with a rich culinary heritage, thanks in large part, to the diversity of immigration and the simple desire to be free.

A toast to Glenfiddish and to the amazing Scots-Irish with many, many thanks! Gle math agus slainte!

POST NOTE, October 18, 2013: Per the request of readers - a short cultural clarification. The people of Scotland and their descendants are called "Scots" or "Scottish".

Scotch refers to the nation's beloved beverage, but NEVER is used to refer to those individuals who proudly wear the kilt (which, by the way, is NEVER called a skirt).

Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2013

Why You Should Celebrate the Real Cinco de Mayo Holiday

Many Americans are surprised when they learn that a beloved U.S. holiday, the Cinco de Mayo, is rarely celebrated in Mexico.

This can be a startling awareness as this fifth of May holiday is linked, in a somewhat confusing manner, to two separate events in Mexican history.

First off, the Cinco de Mayo holiday does NOT celebrate Mexico's independence from Spain.  That event occurs on the sixteenth of September when the nation remembers Father Miguel Hidalgo who bravely rang his church bell and asked his fellow townspeople to claim their freedom from colonial control. His courage sparked the revolution that finally set Mexico free in 1821.

The beloved American Cinco de Mayo holiday honors a different event where Mexico once again for her independence from foreign powers. And herein lays an amazing tale of commerce, history, beach songs and creative marketing.

After Spain lost her hold on Mexico in 1821, many other European powers sought to replace her and control the rich resources of the nation, especially France.

This was supported by many of Mexico’s great landowners, who holding vast colonial land grants, feared change under the new constitution.

As the powers that be struggled to form a new and more just Mexico, France’s Napoleon III approached a young (and recently unemployed) Austrian Archduke Maximilian and his beautiful (and very talented) wife Carlota, asking if they would like to be the emperor and empress of Mexico.

There was only one big problem – no one asked the people of Mexico if they wanted an emperor and empress instead of elected officials. When the imposed, though naïve, new rulers arrived on Mexican soil with a supporting army, Mexican troops defended them initially in the Battle of Puebla on, you guessed it, May 5, 1862.

But France was determined that their expansive new foreign would be a success, including within it the southern American states when the Confederacy hopefully won the Civil War then raging to the north. To protect their plans, vast new numbers of French were sent to occupy Mexico.

The young Maximilian and his lovely wife believed they could bring enlightenment to Mexico and begin to issue rulings that angered their hard line conservative supporters who thought they would return colonial benefits, not overturn them.

Without their support, Napoleon III saw his dreams of an empire in the New World evaporating and quietly withdrew his supportive troops. The result was Maximilian was executed and beautiful Carlota went mad.

Mexico returned to its internal struggle for freedom and let the years of French occupation fade into history.

Sadly, freedom does not come easy for any nation whether it is America in the 1700s or Egypt today. There are always those who seek to take advantage of the disorder that change creates.  One such individual in Mexican history was Porfirio Diaz, who had fought as a young general at the Battle of Pueblo against the French.

He levered his battlefield fame into a dictatorship that lasted from 1876 to 1911which provided some internal stability but limited political freedoms. Finally when the people could stand the oppression no longer, they rose up in a rebellion against the priviledged and favored that lasted for 10 bloody years.

Because of the violence, many Mexicans immigrated to the United States, especially California. In seeking to express their heritage in a new country that had previously largely ignored its own internal hispanic legacy, they searched for an appropriate holiday. 

As they had left Mexico while she was still fighting for freedom against the entitled and endowed, they could hardly select the 16^th of September as a day of celebration.  Sp why not celebrate the Cinco de Mayo instead?

And so a California ethnic holiday was created, but not a national one. That would only occur in the 1980s when the Mexican beer company Corona began exporting beer to the U.S. in 1979.

At first the product was not successful but after conducting  marketing focus groups with male college students, they changed their image to embrace the Cinco de Mayo date as a day of fun, not the memory of a battle.

They supported this theme to include tropical Mexican beaches as captured in the songs of their new spokesperson, Jimmy Buffett of “Margaritaville” fame.

And the rest, as they say, is history – an American holiday with a history as rich and varied as the population of America. Hopefully this Cinco de Mayo this wealth of diversity, in both people and cuisine, will be remembered and honored by all as a treasure and never a libility. 

Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2012