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Halloween recipes from a real witch
Halloween is the witch's favourite holiday, so there's no better time to enchant your dinner guests with a spellbinding meal. Here, white witch Titania Hardie - author of Hubble Bubble: Titania's Book of Magical Feasts - explains how to conjure up a magical atmosphere
Halloween actually marks the old Celtic New Year, and the onset of true winter. This day celebrates the preparations for an old-style 'New Year', and includes traditional games and divinations that help you see what the new year will bring. The Celts called this Samhain (pronounced sow-wane), which means 'summer's end'.
Nowadays, your Halloween supper could be the conclusion of a night out on the town or a simple acknowledgement of the onset of winter and the marking of the earth's season. In either case, invite friends, have fun, and see what you can expect in the coming year.
Titania Hardie's guide to celebrating Halloween
The evolution of Halloween - festivals of fire and light
Decorations for Halloween are widely known: the pumpkin (or originally turnip) lanterns, the ghoulish masks - parodies of the witches and demons who were supposed to stand guardian over the kingdom of spirits - the bonfires, and the fancy dress being the most famous.
Less well known, perhaps, are the truly celebratory aspects of the Pagan new year - fireworks and beacons, laughter and parties. In Britain, the celebration of Guy Fawkes' night stole considerably from the new-year feasts of Samhain and Halloween. So for making magic, we should restore the ancient celebrations of fire and lights - with fireworks and bright colours - which are preserved in some festivals around Britain.
Click here for Titania's guide on how to be a domestic witch
Titania Hardie's Hubble Bubble: Titania's Book of Magical Feasts (Quadrille £14.99) is available from amazon
Over the page: Pumpkins, masks, witches and bonfires
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