Halloween

Halloween is a worldwide annual holiday, which is celebrated on 31st October. It originates from the ancient Celtic festival ‘samhain’, and the Christian holy day of All Saints. ‘Samhain’, when translated means end of summer. The festival is believed to have been the celebration of the end of the harvest, and the preparation for winter. It was thought that the boundaries between the living and the dead did not exist on this day, and the dead could therefore be dangerous to the living at this time. The Celts attempted to emulate the spirit’s presence by wearing horrific masks and costume. Festivals would also include bonfires and curses. On the evening of Halloween the Celts would place a skeleton on their windowsills. Other households would put a carved turnip on the windowsill, to represent the departed, and frighten off evil spirits. This symbolises the head – which is the most powerful part of the body, containing the spirit and knowledge. When the 1846 Great Famine occurred in Ireland, many people immigrated to North America, and took versions of these traditions. Pumpkins were used instead of turnips, as they were more readily available. Pumpkins are now one of the most symbolic items in Halloween, with families carving a comical or frightening face onto the pumpkin.

Many games are played during Halloween. Children dress up in costumes and ‘trick-or-treat’. 'Trick or Treating' originates from America. This is where children knock on their neighbour's houses dressed up and ask for 'treats' - which are usually sweets. If the neighbour does not give them a 'treat' then the child may then perform a 'trick', which is usually to perform some sort of mischeivous trick on the homeowner's property! The most common costumes are skeletons, witches, devils and ghosts. Ghost stories are told, and scary films are shown. A common game is to put apples in a bowl of water, where they float, and participants will use their teeth to remove them. Some parents may organise parties instead of trick or treating, where all children will dress up and play games

As Halloween falls during autumn, a traditional Halloween treat is a toffee apple (see recipe below). Many recipes also include pumpkins – pumpkin pie, pumpkin soup and roasted pumpkin seeds. In England we also celebrate Bonfire night. As this falls near Halloween some people celebrate the two occasions on the same weekend. This may then make the celebrations more like the traditional ones, with ghost stories and food by the bonfire adding to the eerie atmosphere.

With Halloween originating from Celtic traditions, it is not celebrated in every country. Within each country that does celebrate Halloween, festivities and traditions vary slightly

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Ingredients

6 apples

6 wooden Skewers

225g demerara sugar

110ml water

1/2 tsp vinegar

2 tbsp golden syrup

25g butter

Method

1. Dissolve the sugar in the water over a low heat
2. Add the vinegar, syrup and butter
3. Bring to the boil without stirring (about 10 mins)
4. Pierce each apple with a skewer
5. Once the toffee is ready dip in the apple, ensuring that it is fully coated
6. Place on a lightly oiled tray before serving
7. These can then be wrapped in cellophane if not eaten straight away!

Yum!