Soule, a soule, a soule cake,

Please good missus, a soule cake!

An apple, a pear, a plum, or a cherry —

Any good thing to make us all merry.

One for Peter, two for Paul.

Three for Him who made us all . . . 

Long before trick-or-treating for candy on Halloween, there was souling for soul cakes on All Souls’ Day, and long before All Souls’ Day there was Samhain.

 

In modern Irish, Samhain (pronounced SAH-wane) comes from the Irish name for the month of November, Mí na Samhna, meaning summer’s end. The ancient Gaelic fire festival of Samhain celebrated the completion of the agricultural year and was often considered the Celtic or Witches’ New Year.

God bless the master of this house, and the mistress also.

And all the little children that ‘round your table grow.

Likewise your men and maidens, your cattle and your store.

And all that dwells within your gates,

We wish you ten times more! . . .

With the arrival of Christianity in the Celtic Isles, Samhain’s customs were eventually appropriated by the Church and Allhallowtide was instituted from October 31 to November 2, as a time to commemorate the dead.

 

The vigil of Oíche Shamhna or Samhain Eve on October 31 became the Vigil of All Hallows or All Hallows’ Evening (later abbreviated Hallowe’en). Samhain Day on November 1 became All Hallows’ Day, All Saints' Day, or Hallowmas. And November 2 became All Souls' Day or Souling Day to solemnly pray for the salvation of all the lost souls still undergoing purification of their sins in the grips of purgatory before gaining admittance into heaven.

For a soule, a soule, a soule cake,

Dance with death in a soule cake.

An apple, a pear, a plum or a cherry —

All the fruits of this luminary.

One for the sea, two for the soil.

Three for a spin on this mortal coil . . .

With the introduction of All Souls’ Day, the tradition of souling for soul cakes emerged. Impoverished soulers went door-to-door amongst the homes of the wealthy, performing souling songs and rhymes and offering to pray for the souls of their deceased kinfolk in exchange for charitable donations of money, food, or drink. If refused, the dejected soulers were apt to seek retribution by playing pranks on the household and deferring credit to the denizens of the Otherworld. 

The lanes are very dirty, my shoes are very thin.

I’ve got a little pocket to put a penny in —

If you haven’t got a penny, a ha’ penny will do.

If you haven’t got a ha’ penny,

God bless you! . . .

Over time, spiced biscuit-like soul cakes (also called Soul Mass Cakes) became the customary exchange for the promise of prayers and the practice of souling incorporated the costume-wearing typical of the Yuletide guising and mumming of medieval traveling performance troupes. And eventually the combination of traditions gave way to modern-day trick-or-treating.

Go down into the cellar, and see what you can find.

If the barrels are not empty, we hope you will be kind!

We hope you will be kind with your apple and your pear.

For we’ll come no more a soul’n’

’Till this time next year . . .

OVERNIGHT BUTTERMILK SOUL CAKES

A Nourishing Old-World Recipe for Ritual & Remembrance . . .

Something between a scone and a biscuit, these heavenly soul cakes are subtly sweet and richly spiced — sure to turn any lost soul into a saint.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups freshly ground whole wheat flour

1 cup freshly ground oat flour

1 cup buttermilk

4 tablespoons melted butter or lard

1/4 cup Rapadura or brown sugar

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon ground all spice

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon sea salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

13 whole Medjool dates, pitted

1/3 cup mixed dried fruit (such as raisins, currants, cherries, chopped prunes or apricots)

1 large crisp apple, minced

1/3 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, optional

1/4 cup all-purpose flour for rolling out dough

1 large egg + 1 tablespoon milk, cream or water for egg wash

3 teaspoons sugar crystals for decorative topping, if desired

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Mix wheat and oat flour with buttermilk to form a thick dough. Cover and leave in a warm place for 12 to 24 hours.
• Place mixture in a food processor and process for several minutes to knead. Blend in melted butter, remaining dry ingredients and pitted dates.
• Fold in minced apple, dry fruit and chopped nuts with a few pulses.
• Remove dough to a well-floured surface and sprinkle with all-purpose flour to prevent sticking.
• Roll dough to about 3/4 inch thickness. Cut roughly 13 round cakes with a cookie- or biscuit-cutter (or wide-mouth glass jar) and place on a parchment-lined or buttered baking sheet.
• Score each top to create an equal-armed cross and bake at 350° for about 20 minutes.
• Prepare egg wash by whisking together egg and liquid.
• Remove from oven and brush tops with egg mixture. Sprinkle with sugar crystals, if desired, and bake for 10 minutes more.

Enjoy with hot tea, cider or coffee as you reflect on the lives of your dearly departed ancestors and the world in which they lived.

For a soule, a soule, a soule cake,

Bake or break a soule cake.

Scrump the apple, glass the cherry.

Parsley, sage & rosemary —

Thyme to rise, time to fall,

Time to take your curtain call.

Time is up, time it mends,

Time brings all things to an end . . .

More Ways to Celebrate Samhain Season and Deepen Your Connection to the Natural World:

• Dedicate an Altar or Nature Table to Your Ancestors; Collect & Display Their Photos & Keepsakes
• Pull Out Old Photo Albums or Visit an Ancestry Site to Learn the Stories of Your Ancestors
• Visit the Graves of Your Dearly Departed
• Carve & Light Jack-O’-Lanterns to Invite the Spirits of the Ancestors to Visit and Place a Chair by the Fireside to Welcome Them In
• Prepare a Feast of the Ancestral Foods of Your Lineage
• Serve an Extra Plate of Food at the Dinner Table and Eat Your Evening Meal (or Dumb Supper) in Silence, in Honor of the Dead, then Offer the Food Back to Nature
• Take a Nature Walk in Silence and Reflect on the Cycles of Life & Death; Journal on Your Insights
• Divine an Oracle or Tarot Card Spread for Guidance as You Enter the Darkest Time of the Year
• Offer Outlived Habits & Patterns to the Transformative Powers of the Compost Heap for Humification
• Sweep Out Your Home and Replace Your Broom to Ensure No Bad Luck Follows You into the Witches’ New Year
• Bake Soul Cakes and Learn a Souling Song
• Host a Halloween Party and Make Merry with Friends & Family
• Listen to Our Ancestors Playlist & Our Samhain • All Hallows’ Eve Playlist to Take Advantage of Music Medicine
• Shop Our Samhain Collection of Ethically-Produced, Earth-Honoring Goods 

We cannot protect something we do not love, we cannot love what we do not know, and we cannot know what we do not see, or hear, or sense. — Richard Louv

As we remember and appreciate the ways of the ancestors, we honor them. And by reimagining their customs and traditions — in ways that are meaningful and relevant to us today — we re-enchant the world for our children and our children’s children.

So come weavers of story, art and song. Let us gather together now for the time has come, to weave a new vision for those yet to come. For we are the ancestors of our great- granddaughters and sons.— Olivia Fern, Remember Why You Came

 

***