Mickie Mueller
The traditional celebration of Samhain and its secular counterpart Halloween (celebrated alongside Samhain in the northern hemisphere) have developed many flavors specific to this fall season. The air grows crisp in the evening and we yearn for something warming as the days grow shorter. Traditional and seasonal foods this time of the year include pumpkins, winter squash, beans, nuts, kale, and, of course, sweets of all kinds. The flavors of Samhain are a deep part of our food memories.
Walnut Cauliflower Stuffed Kale Leaves
You can also use browned chorizo sausage for this recipe, but even the omnivores in our house fell in love with this healthy version using cauliflower and walnuts. Kale is a Samhain/Halloween tradition from Victorian times and was often used in love divination. It’s said that a walnut tree was sometimes used as a meeting place for witches’ rituals, perfect for the Witch’s New Year!
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 50 minutes
Servings: 16–20 leaves
½ head of cauliflower (or 1/2 pound cooked chorizo)
1 cup walnuts
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
½ tablespoon chili powder
½ teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon salt
1–2 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup cooked rice
2 bunches of kale leaves
Preheat oven to 375° F (245° C). Place the cauliflower (or cooked chorizo), walnuts, chipotle pepper, and spices in a food processor and pulse until the mixture has the texture of sausage. As it’s blending, slowly drizzle the olive oil through the chute until well mixed. Spread mixture evenly on a parchment-lined baking dish and bake for 30 minutes, stirring halfway through.
Fill a large pot with water and bring it to a boil. Fill a separate large bowl with ice and water. Drop 5–6 leaves of kale in the pot for about 1½ minutes. Scoop them out with a slotted spoon and plunge into ice water for 1–2 minutes, then dry on paper towels. Repeat with all the kale. Fold each kale leaf in half along the stem and remove about 2 inches of the stem with a knife, leaving a V-shaped notch in the leaf.
When the walnut and cauliflower mixture is ready to come out of the oven, mix it with the cooked rice. Place a spoonful of the mixture in the middle of a kale leaf. Roll the leaf over the mixture, starting from the bottom of the leaf and rolling toward the pointed end. Fold the sides in as you go; the curly edges of the leaves help keep the filling in. Roll each one up into a cigar shape. Place it seam side down into an oven-safe baking dish. Repeat with each piece of kale. Bake 16–20 minutes and serve warm.
Black and Orange Samhain Chili
Hearty soups and chilis are always popular at the Samhain open houses I have every year. When you eat too much candy, it’s nice to have a high-protein meal, and this black and orange chili fits the bill. Black beans, according to folklore, drive away baneful spirits. The color scheme of the Samhain needfires of old included dark figures silhouetted against an orange fire and setting sun, which is still seen in the modern Halloween aisle. Then we pull in a hint of chocolate to craft this magical chili. You can add browned ground beef, chorizo, or veggie crumbles to this chili if you want to, but we found it was really good as-is.
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 3–4 hours
Servings: 6–8
1 white onion, diced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 orange bell pepper, diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 (16-ounce) cans of black beans, undrained
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
6 sun-dried tomatoes, sliced
3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, sliced
Optional: browned ground beef or vegetarian crumbles
½ ounce dark chocolate
1 small butternut squash, peeled and diced into ½-inch pieces
Shredded cheese, sour cream, cilantro, and tortillas for garnish and topping
In a skillet, sauté the diced onion in olive oil. Cook 2–3 minutes, then add garlic and bell pepper and cook until tender. Add chili powder, smoked paprika, ground cumin, and cayenne pepper Cook 1 minute. Add the mix to a slow cooker with black beans, diced tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, chipotle peppers, browned ground beef if you’re using it, and chocolate (trust me, it’s subtle but adds depth). Cook in the slow cooker on low for 3–4 hours.
Poke the butternut squash several times with a fork and microwave for 2–3 minutes. Slice the top and bottom ends off, then cut it in half, slicing the base away from the neck. Set the sliced flat end on a cutting board and use a serrated vegetable peeler or paring knife in a downward direction to remove the skin, then repeat on the other end. Scoop out the seeds. (You can roast those seeds like pumpkin seeds, delicious!) Cut the squash into ½-inch squares. Add the squash to the slow cooker 20 minutes before the chili is done. If you’re using vegetarian crumbles instead of ground beef, add it at this time as well. When butternut squash is tender, turn the slow cooker down to warm and serve the chili. Feel free to top or serve with cheese, sour cream, cilantro, or tortillas.
Savory Pumpkin Bruschetta
I know there’s pumpkin everything this time of year. While the sweet pumpkin spice “everything” can quickly turn into pumpkin overload, I like using pumpkin for a savory dish as a nice way to experience the flavors of autumn without being redundant.
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Servings: 16–26 slices
2–3 teaspoons olive oil
Small 1-pound pumpkin, peeled and cut into ½ inch cubes (about 4–5 cups total)
½ cup fresh grated parmesan, divided (or sub vegan cheese)
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
2–3 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary sprigs, roughly chopped
Garlic salt to taste
1 loaf of crusty bread, such as French bread (sub gluten-free bread if you prefer)
Heat olive oil in a skillet and sauté the cubed pumpkin until it’s soft and the exterior caramelizes. Put half of the pumpkin in a food processor or blender with ¼ cup of parmesan and, while blending, drizzle in ¼ cup of olive oil. Mix until smooth.
In a large bowl, gently toss the remaining pumpkin cubes with salt and pepper, rosemary, red pepper flakes, a small drizzle of olive oil, and balsamic vinegar. Slice bread about an inch thick; you’ll get 16–26 slices depending on the length of your loaf. Brush both sides with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic salt. Toast the bread on a grill or in a skillet, on both sides, just until golden brown. Arrange bread slices on a baking sheet. Spread the pureed pumpkin on the top of each slice of bread, top with the seasoned pumpkin cubes and fresh parmesan, and put under the broiler for about 1 minute. Serve warm.
Porcelain Sugar Skull Cookies
This is a simple sugar cookie recipe, but if you really want a shortcut, you can use premade sugar cookie dough (although sugar cookies are easy to make yourself). Samhain is a time to remember our ancestors sweetly. These cookies are delicious and the icing looks like painted porcelain. Sugar skulls are used on the offrenda altars of those who celebrate Dia de los Muertos from October 31 through November 2. You can paint these cookies using traditional Dia de los Muertos sugar skulls as inspiration or paint them in any style that you like.
Prep time: 15 minutes (plus 30 minutes for the dough to chill)
Cooking time: 10–12 minutes per cookie sheet
Servings: 24 or more cookies, depending on the size of your cookie cutter
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour mixture
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup white sugar
1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened to room temperature
1 egg or vegan egg substitute
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon almond extract
Preheat oven to 350° F (177° C). Mix flour, baking soda, and salt with a wire whisk. In a separate large bowl, use an electric mixer to blend together the egg, butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract until creamy. Add the dry ingredients and mix with a wooden spoon until well blended. Flatten the ball of dough to about 2 inches thick and wrap with plastic wrap. Flattening it helps it to cool faster. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. This step solidifies the butter, making it easier to roll out, and helps the cookies keep their shape and spread less while cooking than room temperature dough would.
Place chilled dough on a floured countertop and roll it to about ¼ inch thick. Cut with a skull-shaped cookie cutter or cut into shapes with a knife and place the cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake 10–12 minutes or until golden on the edges. Cool for a couple minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to wire cooling racks.
Porcelain Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon water
Mix ingredients together with a spoon until smooth. Spread icing on cooled cookies evenly using a butter knife, small rubber spatula, or the back of a spoon. Allow cookies to set at least 5 hours, until the icing is hard (24 hours is best). Use brand-new paintbrushes and food coloring to decorate the skulls as you’d like; you can also use edible cookie decorating pens.