Samhain ~ Hallowe'en ~ All Hallows Eve ~ Pumpkin Date Loaf

 

Samhain - Halloween - All Hallows Eve - October 31 to November 1, in the Northern Hemisphere - is a Celtic festival marking the end of harvest season and the beginning of winter and is considered to be the darker half of the year. The skies are turning grey, the leaves have fallen from the trees and the garden is bare. It is a time where we honour the dead, protect the living and petition the spirits for wisdom and prediction. 

Death is a reoccurring theme during this time as boundaries dissolve and the veils between worlds during equinoxes and solstices are at their thinnest. That is why it is believed that the spirits, faeries, ancestors and darker entities could more easily roam our lands as the portal between our world and theirs is considered to be at its thinnest; therefore we want to honour and hold offerings to our ancestors, the dead, the departed and the otherworldly for this reason. 

Samhain is a magical time. As the dark half of the year begins, death is followed by rebirth, the end of the old year and the beginning of the new year, it's a time of rest and reflection as we go inward to honour the darkness as we descend into winter and the darker half of the year. Remember... light is born from darkness and darkness has potential and growth... through death we find rebirth.

Other festivals celebrated during or around this time are: Day of the Dead (Mexico), Day of those who have Died/Undas/Araw ng mea Yomao (Philippines), Dia de Finados (Brazil), All Saints' Day (Christian), All Souls' Day (Roman Catholic & Christian), Hallowmas (Christian), Martinmas/Armistice Day (Scottish/British/UK), Remembrance Day (Canada/World, November), The Huron Feast of the Dead (Wyandot Nation - Canadian, Ontario, Canada) and another Celtic tradition, Feast of the Dead/Féile Na Marbh, (Irish) and Diwali (Hindu, mid-October/mid-November, movable).  

A rich and dense spiced loaf that transcends and honours Samhain and the autumnal season.  

Pumpkin Date Loaf

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1 3/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup white sugar

3/4 cup dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/2 cup olive oil

2 eggs

1 can of pumpkin purée

1 cup roughly chopped dates

extra chopped dates, for decorating

pumpkin seeds, for decorating

Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC)

Grease and lightly flour a 2lb. loaf tin. Line the bottom with baking parchment.

In a large bowl mix together the oil, eggs and pumpkin purée. Add the flour, baking soda, salt, white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice and chopped dates. Beat well.

Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Place the extra chopped dates and pumpkin seeds on top. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Do not over bake and check about 5 minutes before done. 

Allow to cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes before removing from the tin to cool completely.