KOCHI: Trick or treat! Trick or treat! Yes, it’s that time of the year again when kids and older people dress up as witches, wizards, and all sorts of spooky characters and visit houses for sweet treats. A festival celebrated every year on October 31 in the West has gained a fair share of popularity, especially among youth in India, in recent years.
Before delving deep into the food traditions of Halloween, let’s get to know the origin of the festival and why people celebrate it with great zest. It all began with the Celts, a people whose culture was spread across Europe for more than 2,000 years. They celebrated the end of the harvest season through the fest called Samhain on October 31.
That night also marked the Celtic New Year, when the spirits of the dead were believed to walk the earth. People used to light bonfires to avert the evil spirits from the living. However, with the rise in the popularity of Christianity in Europe, another holiday started getting recognition, ‘All Saints’ Day (All Hallows Day), which was celebrated on November 1. Therefore, the night before became All Hallows Even, which later became Halloween.
The traditions came to the US via Irish immigrants in the 1840s. This includes bobbing for apples and playing tricks on neighbours. Over the years, the harmless tricks grew into vandalism. To avoid harm, people started giving treats to stop the tricks.
Earlier, a tradition of baking ‘soul cakes’ existed. Made with spices and dried fruits, these cakes, resembling shortbread biscuits, were given to children and the poor. In return, they sang songs and said prayers while going door to door. At the same time, Americans carved jack-o-lanterns out of potatoes with scary faces to ward off evil spirits; it was much later that pumpkins came into place.
Another food item that’s cherished is candy apple – green apples covered in a sweet black toffee coating. The other treat is the candy corn, the harvest-themed colour candies could be one of the oldest Halloween candies still eaten today. If you are hosting a spooky party, TNIE has a list of some quick and creative food ideas that you can recreate for your friends and family.
Pumpkin Soup
Recipe by Chef Arun Vijayan
Culinary Director at Palmyra Hotels
Ingredients
FOR GARNISH
Method of preparation
Heat olive oil in a large saucepan, add the finely chopped onions and cook for 5 minutes until it turns soft. Add the pumpkin chunks and saute for 8-10 minutes until it turns golden. Now pour 700ml vegetable stock and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Serve it hot in a soup bowl and garnish.
Healthy Halloween Monster Bites
Ingredients
Method of preparation
To make the open mouths, cut a sliver out of the center of each quartered apple. Fill the inside of each ‘mouth’ with one tablespoon of peanut butter. Now, to make the “teeth” and ‘tongues,’ push slivered almonds into the apple to make the ‘teeth’ and place a sliced strawberry on the bottom to form the ‘tongues’. For the ‘eyes,’ slice off a tiny bit of the end of each marshmallow to make one side sticky; press the sticky side of two marshmallows. Keep a chocolate chip in each marshmallow, flat side outward, to make the eyeballs. Store in the refrigerator for an hour or two before serving.
Beetroot spaghetti chicken pasta
Recipe by Chef Arun Vijaykumar, executive chef
Zamzam group of restaurant
Ingredients
Method of preparation
Cook the spaghetti along with beetroot until al dente. Drain and set aside. Add the cooked spaghetti to the skillet and toss with pasta herbs and seasoning. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and chopped onion, and sauté until fragrant and onions are translucent. Add cream to it and cook for about 5-7 minutes, until softened.
Push the white sauce mixture to one side of the skillet and add the chicken pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Once the chicken is cooked, make a circle of beetroot spaghetti and keep white sauce mixture on centre. Keep two olives on the centre of pasta like eyes. Serve the beetroot chicken spaghetti pasta in a plate garnished with fried basil and cherry tomatoes.
Blood orange brews
Athulkrishna
Bartender, Blnd Restrobar, Thiruvananthapuram
Ingredients
Method of preparation
Mix all the ingredients and garnish with a slice of blood orange. To top it off, serve the drink in a glass rimed with chilli salt.
Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
Method of preparation
Place the pumpkin in a large saucepan, add some water and bring to the boil. Cover with a lid and simmer for 15 minutes. Drain and let the pumpkin cool. Heat oven to 1800C, roll out the pastry and use it to line a 22cm loose-bottomed tart tin. Let it cool for 15 minutes. Line the pastry with baking parchment and baking beans, then bake for 15 minutes. Remove the beans and paper, and cook for another 10 minutes until the base is pale golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Increase oven to 2200C. Push the cooled pumpkin through a sieve into a bowl. In another bowl, combine sugar, salt, nutmeg and half the cinnamon. Mix the beaten eggs, melted butter and milk, add to the pumpkin purée and stir to combine. Pour into the tart shell and cook for 10 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 180C and bake for 35-40 minutes. Serve chilled.