Cooking Up Comfort: Fall Recipes & Rituals Celebrated Around the Globe

What makes a house a home? Is it the comfort of a warm bed? Having someone to share

breakfast with? Or is it a combination of many things? For us, a home is where the heart is,

which means celebrating who you are at the core of your being through rituals and recipes of

your upbringing. Familiarity gives us a sense of belonging in our communities, cultures, and our

homes and what better way to share this than through cooking? Let’s take a look at how other

cultures celebrate and how you may can adopt some of their traditions into your kitchen:

Mabon: A celebration of the Autumnal Equinox

A Pagan holiday celebrated during one of the eight Wiccan sabbats of the year. Many celebrate

this holiday by picking apples, a traditional food eaten during this time, and performing rituals to

restore “balance and harmony” in their lives. They would also set up altars with symbols to

represent the season to thank the gods for the harvest.

Here are three ways you can cook comfort using them in your kitchen:

1. Apple Pie: A dessert served best with ice cream

2. Apple Cider: A cozy drink for a nightcap

3. Apple Butter: A decadent preserve used for breads or fillings

Mid-Autumn Festival “Mooncake Festival:” A celebration of family reunion

Long ago in Chinese tradition, this festival originated from the story of Chang-E, also known as

the Moon Lady, and her husband Hou Yi. In a nutshell, Chang-E ascended to the moon while

Hou Yi ascended to the sun by eating a cake, i.e “mooncake.” On the 15th of every month of the

eight lunar month, they are reunited. Traditionally, people celebrate by eating mooncakes,

pomelo, and taro. Here are three ways you can cook comfort using them in your kitchen:

1. Mooncake: A pastry made best with different flavor profiles (vanilla, pistachio,

strawberry, etc)

2. Pomelo: A citrus fruit that can be eaten raw or used in a mixed drink such as jasmine tea

3. Taro: A root vegetable that can be turned into a paste and used in buns or mooncakes

Rosh Hashanah: The Jewish New Year

This holiday holds as a time of reflection and prayer as the people of this community prepare for

Yom Kippur. Their rituals focus on repentance and renewal. Traditional foods eaten during this

time are pomegranates, round challah bread, and apples dipped in honey.

Here are three ways you can cook comfort using them in your kitchen:

1. Pomegranate Salad: A fruit used to upgrade your salads and best served with vinaigrette

dressings

2. Herb Challah Bread: A grain that can be eaten with an herb butter or mixed with an herb

butter during the baking process

3. Stovetop Honey Apples: A fruit warmed in a saucepan and glazed with honey, that can

be added to oatmeal, yogurt, and inside a muffin

Inspiration from other cultures gives us room to create our own rituals and recipes, so we hope

that these ideas sparked innovative ways for you to be creative in your kitchen. Hello Fall and

hello to a new harvest!