Funerals and Food

Food and Funerals

In almost every culture, and every point in time, food has always played a major role in funerals, funerary rites, and death in general. From grave goods like breads and wines so that the soul may carry full bellies in the after life, to the Turning of the Bones ceremonies where bones of those long since past and brought out, cleaned and given a place at the table with food and drink like the living. How often is it then when someone dies, everyone seems to supply the grieving family with foods like casseroles? It only seems natural to provide food.

Some places have superstitions that when a person dies in a house all foods of a certain type need to be removed from the house or the foods will go bad. In Brittany, an area of Northwestern France, it is believed that if a person dies of cancer, you are to place a dish of butter near the body so that the cancer will leach into the butter. Then after a short period of time the butter is removed from the house so that no surviving family members will contract the disease.

When we thing of celebrations and food we mainly think about weddings, but most caterers say that more food is eaten at a funeral then at a wedding. Why is that? Is it a jab to death that the living are doing one act that the deceased can no longer do? Or is it drowning our sorrows in cakes, sandwiches, and libations?

Regardless the link between food and funerals is very close. There are even foods that are reserved for funerals exclusively. Below you will see a recipe for Amish Funeral Pie. This is a simple food, with simple preparation, but a long history of being associated with being an only funeral food. There are also many variations of this pie, just like there are a lot of variations of funeral cakes from Belgium to Norway to Creole style.

What kinds of foods have you experienced at funerals? What recipe do you have that is a comfort or funeral food? We would like to know your story about the food, and share a recipe too.

Funeral Pie- Amish

• Prep 30 m
  
• Cook 45 m
  
• Ready In 4 h 15 m
  

Ingredients

• 2 cups raisins
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  

• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch single crust pie
  

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C). Line a pan with half the pastry and chill.
2. Place the raisins and 2/3 cup of the water in a saucepan and heat over medium heat for 5 minutes.
3. Combine the sugars, cornstarch, spices, and salt in a bowl and, mixing all the time, slowly add the remaining water. Add this mixture to the heating raisins. Cook and stir until the mixture starts to bubble. Add the vinegar and butter and heat until the butter is melted. Cool until room temperature.
4. Pour into the prepared shell and top with the second crust. Bake 25 minutes or until golden. Cool completely before serving.