Today marks the first of two festive days collectively known as Días de los Muertos, a Hispanic folk holiday to remember the souls of those departed and to temporarily welcome them home with a vibrant celebration of color, food, and music. Leigh and Kim go beyond the veil to reveal the origins of two iconic food traditions: Pan de Muerto and Calaveres du Azucar.
During Días de los Muertos, millions of Hispanic families celebrate their ancestors and deceased loved ones with special traditions and foods that acknowledge the circle of life. The air fills with sweet scents of marigolds, orange blossom, and anise to guide the family spirits home, and everywhere you turn you find pillowy sweet breads decorated with skulls & bones or brightly decorated sugar skulls. Behind these paradoxical images - macabre yet cheerful - lie the stories of ancient Mesoamerica rites transformed by European colonialism into more palatable traditions.
Sources We Found Helpful for this Episode
Pan de Muerto by Mexican Food Kitchen
Oaxaca welcomes spirits home with ’bread of the dead’ | National Geographic
Books We Think You’ll Enjoy Reading
Skulls to the Living, Bread to the Dead: The Day of the Dead in Mexico and Beyond by Stanley Brandes
Llewellyn's Little Book of the Day of the Dead by Jaime Gironés
This Guera's Guide to Dia de los Muertos: An Introduction to the Holiday and Assistance on Setting up the Altar by Lauren Alaniz
Recipes You Really Need to Try
Pan de Muerto by Good Housekeeping
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