Have you noticed all the Day of the Dead stuff in stores lately? In all transparency I really didn't know much about this holiday except that it was of Mexican origin so I decided to do a little research.
Day of the Dead aka Día de los Muertos is indeed a Mexican holiday that focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember those who have died and help support their spiritual journey.
I was curious about all the skulls decorated with bright colors and flowers and according to experts (aka Wikipedia) "people go to cemeteries to be with the souls of the departed and build private altars containing favorite foods and beverages, as well as photos and memorabilia, of the departed. The intent is to encourage visits by the souls, so the souls will hear the prayers and the comments of the living directed to them."
"Plans for the day are made throughout the year, including gathering the goods to be offered to the dead. During the 3-day period families usually clean and decorate graves which often include orange Mexican marigolds sometimes called Flor de Muerto (Flower of Dead). These flowers are thought to attract souls of the dead to the offerings. It is also believed the bright petals with a strong scent can guide the souls from cemeteries to their family homes."
"Families will also offer trinkets or the deceased's favorite candies on the grave. Some families have ofrendas in homes, usually with foods such as candied pumpkin, pan de muerto ("bread of dead"), and sugar skulls; and beverages such as atole. The ofrendas are left out in the homes as a welcoming gesture for the deceased."
So now I know and decided to make some of my own sugar skulls! I opted for no dip cake bites.
Dipping treats is my least favorite thing to do so I found a work around. I started with some cupcakes. Crumble and mix with the frosting in a bowl.
Use a skull silicone ice cube tray and outline skull with melted white chocolate or vanilla melting wafers. Don't fill it all the way with the chocolate - you want to leave space to fill it. Refrigerate for 5-10 minutes until chocolate is hardened.
Fill mold with cupcake mixture then cover with more melted chocolate.
Refrigerate for another 10 minutes then pop skull out of mold.
Decorate with fun sprinkles and/or more melting wafers. I added a little edible silver spray to finish them.
Day of the Dead falls is October 31, Nov 1, and 2. Kinda neat that it coincides with Halloween!
Do you celebrate or decorate for Day of the Dead? If so share what you do!
Hay más tiempo que vida which means there is more time than life - so very true. Enjoy each day to its fullest!
Happy days to you and thanks for stopping by!
