This time of year is always my favorite for both cooking and taking pictures. I look forward to the squashes, pears, and apples flooding the markets almost as much as I look forward to the parades, processions, and celebrations that take place around Halloween and Dia de los Muertos. Dia de los Muertos is visually and spiritually stunning and I love to walk to the Mission district to see the procession and view the elaborate alters created in the neighborhood parks.

Dia de los Muertos, San Francisco

Aztecs had been celebrating the Day of the Dead for thousands of years before the Spanish arrived. Apparently the celebration originally took place in the summertime around July and August on the Aztec calendar, but feeling as if the ritual was sacrilegious Spanish priests tried to eradicate it. Dia de los Muertos was moved either by Spanish priests (or as a concession by the native people) to coincide with the Christian holiday, All Hallows Eve.

November 1st is All Saints Day and November 2nd is All Souls Day, collectively known as Dias de los Muertos. During this period of time each year many Latinos celebrate and honor the souls of the deceased who are believed to return to eat, drink, and celebrate with their Earth-bound relatives -- (I thought it was primarily a Mexican ritual, but my friend from El Salvador said many Central American countries observe Day of the Dead as well). People from different regions celebrate slightly differently but generally speaking the ritual takes place to honor the dead -- death being viewed as simply part of the continuation of the cycle of life and not something to fear. It is a reflective and celebratory time, and not supposed to be scary or sad.

All Hallows Eve, San Francisco

Grave and alter preparation is a family affair as people congregate in the cemetaries. Each site is adorned with the favorite foods, drinks, and personal belongings of the deceased. Marigolds, chrysanthemums, and candles are placed on the graves and help to guide the spirits home. Stories are told featuring the dead and bells begin ringing in the early evening to summon the spirits and ring at regular intervals throughout the night.

Food plays an intricate part in this celebration and there are all sorts of edibles associated with Dia de los Muertos varying from region to region. Favorites of the deceased are prepared using upmost care and quality. Time-intensive 'special-occasion' foods are made including moles, tamales, pan de muerto, sugar skull candies and marzipan, oh, and plenty of traditional liquors like mescal.

Unfortunately, I don't know much more about the food or ritual of Day of the Dead.... Some specific towns and regions are well-known for their observances of this particular celebration and I hope to travel to one of the towns or regions next year to learn more if possible.

Dia de los Muertos, San Francisco

So, onto the recipe....I came across these Day of the Dead cookies last year, and I marked my calendar to make them - they aren't exactly traditional, but I thought they looked fun. I debated between this recipe and the Day of the Dead bread on page 134 of the Cheese Board Cookbook which I also had tagged.

There are a couple things you should know if you are going to embark on making these cookies -- In the spirit of Dia de los Muertos food preparation, these are indeed time-intensive to make. You might need to reach out to your Eastern influences as well to summon up patience and serenity when it comes to rolling and slicing the dough. The cookies tasted standard (exactly what you would expect from a simple vanilla and chocolate cookie) and the next time around I will probably add some cinnamon to the chocolate dough for a little kick -- and big grained sugar spinkled on the faces for texture and a bit of added sweetness before baking.

Some tips:

-You need to keep the dough well chilled at all times.
-You will need to remake each of your faces after you slice.
-I used dental floss to slice the dough. I didn't want the drag of a knife to smash my skull shapes.
-I also cut the dough logs in half so making the faces was more exact.

One other note, the recipe says it will yield about 36 cookies. I ended up with about 18 (maybe mine were just on the big side)...Other than that, the cookies are very straight forward and cute when they were completed.

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