Why Do We Eat Candy on Halloween?

Trick-or-treating for candy is synonymous with Halloween, but the tradition had to go through a centuries-long evolution to arrive at the place it is today. Historians agree that a Celtic autumn festival called Samhain was the precursor to modern Halloween. Celtics may have appeased the spirits they believed still walked the Earth was by leaving treats on their doorsteps. Catholics rebranded many pagan holidays to fit their religion. November 1 became the "feasts of All Saints and All Souls," and the day before it was dubbed "All-Hallows'-Eve." The new holidays looked a lot different from the original Celtic festival, but many traditions stuck around, including the practice of honoring the dead with food. The food of choice for Christians became "soul cakes," small pastries usually baked with expensive ingredients and spices. Instead of leaving them outside for passing ghosts, soul cakes were distributed to beggars who went door-to-door promising to pray for souls of the deceased in exchange for something to eat. Sometimes they wore costumes to honor the saints-something pagans originally did to avoid being harassed by evil spirits. The ritual, known as souling, is believed to have planted the seeds for modern-day trick-or-treating. In America, the first Halloween celebrations were a way to mark the end-of-year harvest season, and the food that was served mainly consisted of homemade seasonal treats like caramel apples and mixed nuts. It wasn't until the 1950s that trick-or-treating gained popularity in the U.S. Following the Great Depression and World War II, the suburbs were booming, and people were looking for excuses to have fun and get to know their neighbors. The old practice of souling was resurrected and made into an excuse for kids to dress up in costumes and roam their neighborhoods. Common trick-or-treat offerings included nuts, coins, and homemade baked goods. That changed when the candy companies got their hands on the holiday. They had already convinced consumers that they needed candy on Christmas and Easter, and they were looking for an equally lucrative opportunity to market candy in the fall. Enjoy the candy along with these spooky titles

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Jami Attenberg

Jami Attenberg has written about food, travel, books, relationships and urban life for The New York Times Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, the Sunday Times, and others. Attenberg grew up in Buffalo Grove, Illinois, and graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a degree in Writing. She worked at HBO before deciding to devote herself to fiction writing, initially supported by temp jobs. Attenberg splits her time between Brooklyn, NY, and New Orleans, LA. Check out her titles here.

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Featuring new releases from John Le Carre and Jami Attenberg, biographies of Janis Joplin and Thomas Edison and MORE...Courtesy of Literary Hub-Check them out here.