Halloween Ideas: Food2GoodHealth

Halloween is an annual holiday observed on October 31. It has roots in the Celtic festival of Samhain and the Christian holiday All Saints' Day, but is today largely a secular celebration.

It is that time of the year when the evil spirits roam on earth...its Halloween!! This festival marks the end of pleasant summers and the beginning of bitter cold. In ancient times people believed in evil spirits and witchcraft and thought that they get loose on Earth and roam about on the night before New Year in search of praise and victims. Thus, they painted their faces and wear terrible costumes to frighten away these ghosts and witches so that they would not harm them and their cattle and crops. Halloween is one of the more popular holidays for children.

The word Halloween is first attested in the 16th century and represents a Scottish variant of the fuller All-Hallows-Even ("evening"), that is, the night before All Hallows Day. Up through the early twentieth century, the spelling "Hallowe'en" was frequently used, eliding the "v" and shortening the word. Common Halloween activities include trick-or-treating, wearing costumes and attending costume parties, carving jack-o'-lanterns, ghost tours, bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted attractions, committing pranks, telling ghost stories or other frightening tales, and watching horror films.

History of Halloween:

Halloween has its origins in the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain (pronounced "sah-win"). The festival of Samhain is a celebration of the end of the harvest season in Gaelic culture. Samhain was a time used by the ancient pagans to take stock of supplies and prepare for winter. The ancient Gaels believed that on October 31, the boundaries between the worlds of the living and the dead overlapped and the deceased would come back to life and cause havoc such as sickness or damaged crops. The festival would frequently involve bonfires. It is believed that the fires attracted insects to the area which attracted bats to the area. These are additional attributes of the history of Halloween. Masks and consumes were worn in an attempt to mimic the evil spirits or appease them.

Trick or Treat?

• Trick-or-treating, is an activity for children on or around Halloween in which they proceed from house to house in costumes, asking for treats such as confectionery with the question, "Trick or treat?" The "trick" part of "trick or treat" is a threat to play a trick on the homeowner or his property if no treat is given. Trick-or-treating is one of the main traditions of Halloween. It has become socially expected that if one lives in a neighborhood with children one should purchase treats in preparation for trick-or-treaters.
• Some trace the origins of present day "trick-or-treat" to Samhain, which was the supreme night of demonic jubilation. Spirits of the dead would rise out of their graves and wander the countryside, trying to return to the homes where they formerly lived. Frightened villagers tried to appease these wandering spirits by offering them gifts of fruit and nuts. They began the tradition of placing plates of the finest food and bits of treats that the household had to offer on their doorsteps, as gifts, to appease the hunger of the ghostly wanderers. If not placated, villagers feared that the spirits would kill their flocks or destroy their property.
• Others trace "trick-or-treat" to a European custom called "souling". Beggars would go from village to village begging for "soul cakes" made out of square pieces of bread with currants. The more soul cakes the beggars would receive, the more prayers they would promise to say on behalf of the dead relatives of the donors. At the time, it was believed that the dead remained in limbo for a time after death, and that prayer, even by strangers could guarantee a soul's passage to heaven.
• In many parts of Britain and Ireland this night used to be known as 'Mischief Night', which meant that people were free to go around the village playing pranks and getting up to any kind of mischief without fear of being punished. Many of the different customs were taken to the United States by Irish and Scottish immigrants in the nineteenth century, and they developed into 'trick or treat'.
• The history of Halloween has evolved. The activity is popular in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, and due to increased American cultural influence in recent years, imported through exposure to US television and other media, trick-or-treating has started to occur among children in many parts of Europe, and in the Saudi Aramco camps of Dhahran, Akaria compounds and Ras Tanura in Saudi Arabia. The most significant growth — and resistance is in the United Kingdom, where the police have threatened to prosecute parents who allow their children to carry out the "trick" element. In continental Europe, where the commerce-driven importation of Halloween is seen with more skepticism, numerous destructive or illegal "tricks" and police warnings have further raised suspicion about this game and Halloween in general.

Halloween treats:

Because the holiday comes in the wake of the annual apple harvest, candy apples (known as toffee apples outside North America), caramel or taffy apples are common Halloween treats made by rolling whole apples in sticky sugar syrup, sometimes followed by rolling them in nuts.

One custom that persists in modern-day Ireland is the baking (or more often nowadays, the purchase) of a barmbrack, which is a light fruitcake, into which a plain ring, a coin and other charms are placed before baking. It is said that those who get a ring will find their true love in the ensuing year. This is similar to the tradition of king cake at the festival of Epiphany.

List of foods associated with the holiday:

Barmbrack (Ireland), Bonfire toffee (Britain), Candy apples, Candy corn (North America),Caramel apples, Caramel corn, Colcannon (Ireland), Pumpkin, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, Roasted pumpkin seeds, Roasted sweet corn, Soul cakes, Novelty candy shaped like skulls, pumpkins, bats, worms, etc

Here are some quick and easy ideas for Halloween party food and drinks. You are sure to have unnerving party!!!!

• A fly in my drink! -- Freeze ice cubes with edible "insects" inside by filling a tray half full and freezing, then adding a gummy critter or a couple of raisins, fill the rest of the way with liquid and re-freeze.
• Fill a new plastic household glove with lemonade, limeade or other liquids to create an eerie floating hand in your punch bowl. Use heavy duty rubber bands to secure the top of the glove, leaving a little room for expansion. Use a small plastic dish to prop up the secured end of the glove in the freezer. Freeze until solid, peel away the glove and float the hand in the punchbowl.
• For realistic looking spooky eyes; see our recipe for Eyeball Cupcakes and Chocolate-Covered Cherry Mice recipe
• You can use a ring mold or bundt cake pan to freeze a creepy ice ring for you punch bowl. Fill 1/3 with liquid and freeze, arrange a layer of gummy worms on frozen ring, fill to 3/4 full and re-freeze. To un-mold, simply run hot water over ring for a second to two.
• Use plastic light sticks as swizzle sticks, it gives the drinks an eerie, mysterious glow.
• Make Halloween shaped tortilla chips by using cookies cutters to cut shapes out of tortillas, then deep fry until crisp. You can also make low fat tortilla chips by baking your cutouts in a 350° F oven. In either case, sprinkle with salt. Chips made of blue corn tortillas look especially spooky.

Tips for Halloween parties at home:

• If juice or cider is served to children at Halloween parties, make sure it is pasteurized or otherwise treated to destroy harmful bacteria. Juice or cider that has not been treated will say so on the label.
• No matter how tempting, don't taste raw cookie dough or cake batter.
• Before going "bobbing for apples," an all-time favorite Halloween game, reduce the number of bacteria that might be present on apples and other raw fruits and vegetables by thoroughly rinsing them under cool running water. As an added precaution, use a produce brush to remove surface dirt.
• "Scare" bacteria away by keeping all perishable foods chilled until serving time. These include, for example, finger sandwiches, cheese platters, fruit or tossed salads, cold pasta dishes with meat, poultry, or seafood, and cream pies or cakes with whipped-cream and cream-cheese frostings. Cold temperatures help keep most harmful bacteria from multiplying. And don't leave the food at room temperature for more than two-hours.
• Keep costume competitions.

Celebrating 4 July with Food2GoodHealth

Independence Day in the United States of America is annually celebrated on July 4 and is often known as "the Fourth of July". This day is traditionally celebrated with parades and carnivals, picnics and barbecues and, in the evening, with fantastic firework displays. The 4th of July celebrations in Washington, DC are among the most attended events of the year. There are plenty of activities scheduled throughout the day to keep the whole family busy.

Everyone celebrates this special day with terrific food, having fun with home and friends, and fireworks, which put the patriotic red, blue and light firmness for July 4th. For this special day, merchants showcase 4th July outfits featuring red, blue and light colors, and come with some fascinating features.

4th of July is a day of family celebrations with picnics and barbecues, showing a great deal of emphasis on the American tradition of political freedom. Activities associated with the day include watermelon or hotdog eating competitions and sporting events, such as baseball games, three-legged races, swimming activities and tug-of-war games.

Food2Goodhealth is also celebrating this event online. We have created a special festival page which has all about 4 July. We have all recipes collection including various barbeques, desserts and beverages for celebration. You will get Party tips, barbeque tips, cake decoration ideas, special kids menu, history and much more only at Food2Goodhealth. Below I have mentioned few thngs about these.

Food for celebration:

The Fourth of July has become synonymous with the barbecue, outdoor cooking, and summer fun. Sure, holidays are for celebrating and are meant to be enjoyed, but you don’t have to sacrifice your health every time you attend a BBQ.

Cooking healthy food for the Fourth of July means adding vitamins and minerals by serving vegetable and fruit based dishes. Healthy recipes include more fruit, vegetables and whole grains. We need to broaden our food ideas to make 4th of July barbecue party healthy and fun simultaneously.

Barbeque:

Barbeque is still the choice for many 4th of July picnics and parties; it is easy to prepare in advance, and there is minimal clean-up required. Hamburgers are another simple choice, but consider jazzing them up by mixing onion or garlic powder into the beef. A classier barbeque option is fun and festive kebabs. Use disposable wood or bamboo skewers to grill chunks of chicken, shrimp or beef. Steak sauce, Worcestershire sauce or BBQ sauce also adds a different flavor.

Instead of just burgers and hot dogs, some shrimp, crab or even lobster can be used, you can also add chicken, fish and steaks to the menu and all this can be cooked on the grill. Wooden kebab skewers make noshing on snacks easy. Skewer two-inch fruit pieces like melon, watermelon and pineapple. Make lots and spread them out on a red tray. Give guests some vegetables by roasting cherry tomatoes, squash and onions.

Before the party, pound and marinate chicken strips. Grill them on kebab sticks and serve them with tasty dips. Cube a variety of cheeses along with mini pickles and olives. Skewer them with American flag toothpicks. Surround your cubes with snack and wheat crackers.

Desserts:

A sheet cake decorated to look like the United States flag is often the first and easiest choice, but why not try something new for the party? Bake individual cupcakes and frost them in white. While leaving many plain, top some with strawberries and others with blueberries, than place them on a tray in the order of the colors of the flag. Your guests are sure to love them, and there are no eating utensils required.

A root-beer float is a delicious traditional treat for the Fourth. Serve strawberry and blueberry parfaits in plastic parfait cups. Offer guests homemade banana pops or pickle pops. Churned ice cream made with fresh peaches is a refreshing dessert. Before the guests arrive, scoop up ice cream into individual serving bowls. Let guests add toppings like cherries and whipped cream.

Decorate the dessert such as a cake in the shape of an American flag. For red stripes, go with strawberries in rows. For the stars, add enough blueberries to make them shine through. Frost the cake white and decorate. This is a great way to make a special treat.

Don’t forget the drinks. You can make various types of drinks special by just adding in flavored ice cubes, in blue and red. To make them, add strawberry and blueberry flavoring to the ice cube trays. Or, just use the right colored Koo-Aid to make it work. Drop them into drinks for a festive yet fun way to add to your food celebration.

Favorite American Desserts:
The month of July promises a regional variety of succulent fresh fruit. A national favorite is Strawberry shortcake speckled with blueberries for a traditional red, white and blue dessert. Fresh peaches are turned into pies and cobblers, and everyone knows that the Fourth of July wouldn’t be complete without a variation on the chocolate brownie.

These same regional fruits can be dropped and frozen into another American favorite, ice cream. No other holiday motivates moms and dads to drag out their homemade ice cream maker more than a sizzling Fourth of July.

The foods traditionally eaten on the Fourth of July can take all sorts of twists and turns into a delicious culinary experience.

Cold Beverages:

Cold beverages on Independence Day include fresh lemonade or iced tea from scratch. Every picnic cooler is filled with cold beer for elderly and soft drinks for the kids.

Kids Menu:

The 4th of July is a day when kids get out and celebrate with family and friends. What would a great Fourth of July celebration be without lots of delicious food? But sometimes kids get left out of the party because there's only grownup food around.

Keep it simple with foods. Kids love - hot dogs and hamburgers! Put some on the grill and have plates with onions, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese and chili sauce on them.  Make some baked beans, macaroni salad and potato salad as side dishes.

Set out containers of relish, mustard and ketchup. Have bowls of chips and pretzels out as snacks. Make some lemonade and iced tea for drinks. For dessert, make cookies with red frosting for half and blue frosting for the other half or make red and blue iced cupcakes with miniature flags stuck in the icing.

Bottom Line:

These are few ideas from Food2GoodHealth about 4^th July celebration. Still you can find more about history, kids menu for celebration and lot more things. Just visit here.

Celebrate Pentecost with Food2GoodHealth

Pentecost (Whitsunday) is a major festival in the Christian church. It is celebrated on the Sunday which falls on the 50th day after the Easter festival. It is also known as Whitsunday, or Whit Sunday. 

What Do People do:

In many parts of the world, Pentecost has become a traditional day for baptisms to take place. On this day, many people enjoy family gatherings, picnics, or outings to the country. Pentecost is called "the Green Holiday" in Poland. It is a time when people decorate their houses with green branches to bring blessings on the home and the people living in it. Whitsunday is linked to pagan spring rites, such as the English custom of Morris dancing and the drinking of “Whitsun ale”.

In the United States, Christians share their perspective about the meaning of Pentecost as well as how the diversity of languages and cultures can enhance their worship and fellowship with each another. Christians see Pentecost as an expansion of God's favor and care from Judaism to all peoples. Many churches celebrate Pentecost with a mass or worship service on this day. 

Public life:

Whitsunday is a public holiday in some places around the world, including countries in Europe such as Estonia and Finland. It is not a federal holiday in countries such as Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States. 

Symbols:

The symbols of Pentecost are those of the Holy Spirit and include flames, wind, the breath of God and a dove. In Estonia and Finland eggs are dyed as at Easter because their hens don’t lay eggs until this time. In Germany the day is called “Pfingsten” and pink and red peonies, called “Whitsun roses”, are the symbols along with the birch trees. The English refer to the holiday as Whitsunday with reference to the white garments worn on Pentecost by the newly baptized.

Some churches lower a carved dove into the congregation and call this “swinging the Holy Ghost”. Cattle are decorated and an overdressed person is said to be “dressed like a Whitsun ox”. A holdover pagan game is called “hunting the green man”, a young man dressed in leaves and moss hides, and children hunt him.

The festival is often called Pentecost because when the disciples received the Holy Spirit and began to go out and preach about Jesus it was the Jewish festival of Pentecost.

Pentecost is recognized as the birth of the Christian Church. The Apostle Peter preached a sermon which resulted in 3,000 people becoming believers.

Customs and Traditions:

White Walks

Christians in some towns and cities have traditionally taken part in Whit Walks. Whitsun was the time for walks and processions. The traditional "Procession of Witness" has long been celebrated throughout the North West.

Bread and Cheese Throwing:
In Gloucestershire, Whit Sunday is often referred to as 'Bread and Cheese Day' because of a very strange custom that takes place on this day.

In St Braivels, Gloucestershire, following evensong on Whit Monday, basketfuls of bread and cheese are thrown from a wall near the old castle, to be scrambled for in a lane below. The locals of St Braivels have been hurling bread and cheese since the 13th century, when the custom began probably as a payment for the villagers' right to cut timber from a nearby wood.

Cheese Rolling:

Gloucester cheese Rolling:
After rolling three double Gloucester cheeses around the church, one is cut up and shared amongst bystanders and the other two are rolled down a steep hill.

Stilton Cheese Rolling:
Teams of four, in bizarre costumes, roll stilton cheese along a 50-yard course. They must not kick or throw the cheeses. The prize is a whole Stilton Cheese, which weighs about 16 pounds, and bottles of port—the traditional accompaniment.

Whitsunday Food Ideas!

Whitsunday can be celebrated with everyone- a get together with food.

In food typical meals of Jesus’ time can be involved with items like chickens, lamb, cheese, carrots, cucumber, nuts, peaches, apples, pears, etc. Sweet things can also be involved as well.

Alternatively you could have general party food. This might include crisps, sandwiches, cakes, carrot sticks, sausage rolls. Some of the things can also be included for example the carrot sticks and having cucumber in a salad, chicken drumsticks and tuna or cheese sandwiches or can even use flatbread instead of sandwiches. 

Cookies or biscuits could also be made for the party but fashioned to look more like flames and then decorated with red, yellow and orange icing.

This is all about Pentecost festival. Food2GoodHealth has created a beautiful page on Whitsunday. You can visit it for further details.