Barm Brack
Báirín Breac, or barm brack as it is popularly known, means speckled loaf in Gaelic, because it is studded with raisins and currants. It is traditionally made in the days leading up to Samhain. Very briefly, in the Celtic pagan tradition, Samhain is the end of the harvest season and the beginning of the ‘dark half’ of the year. Samhain is the Irish Gaelic word for November, and therefore also the name of the Celt’s traditional autumn festival - one of four fire festivals throughout the year. The first of November is the beginning of the Celtic New Year and the festival began as the sun set the evening before - October 31st. It was also believed that at this time, the veil between the living and the dead was most permeable. The connections to the origin of Halloween are obvious, as is Christianity’s need - once it arrived in Ireland - to somehow make this pagan tradition more acceptable. In the 7th century, Pope Boniface decided to declare November 1st All Saint’s day or All Hallow’s Day - therefore Oct 31st became All Hallow’s Eve, or what we now call Halloween. Pranks, costumes, and so much of what we associate with Halloween can all be traced back to the pagan celebration of Samhain.
Since the veil between the living and the dead was at its thinnest, families often left gifts of food for returning ancestors who were visiting their earthly homes. They would even leave their windows open a bit to allow easier access. Barm brack was one of those soul cakes left to appease a visiting spirit.
Barm brack is one of many various types of tea cakes, although different in that it is usually leavened with yeast rather than baking soda. Traditionally, in a custom derived from Samhain, several items were baked into the loaf - among them a stick, a pea, a ring, a piece of cloth, and a coin. Some revolved around marriage, as divination often did. The items in the loaf were meant as an attempt at foretelling the future of the finder. Finding the stick foretold an unhappy marriage (or an abusive marriage), the pea meant the finder would not marry that year, the ring promised the finder they would soon marry, the cloth indicated hard times to come, and the coin was a sign of riches or good fortune. Remembering that October 31st was also New Year’s Eve, barm brack would be baked by the woman of the house, and according to historian Brid Mahon, the man of the house would then take three bites and then throw it against the front door in hopes that the Holy Trinity would rid Ireland from starvation in the coming year.
The women in my family have always made soda breads, in various iterations, but the first time I ever heard of barm brack was in the 80’s from Van Morrison in his song, A Sense of Wonder. Go figure. It also has many variations, but make sure to soak the dried fruit in strong tea and a bit of whiskey.
I baked only a coin in my barm brack, because I think we can all use a little good fortune this year. We will also throw bits at the front door, and I will leave my barm brack out and my windows open on the night of the 31st - there are quite a few souls that I’d really love to visit with again.
Barm Brack
5 ⅔ cups bread flour, plus extra for dusting
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp salt
2 tsp active dry yeast
1 tbsp superfine or caster sugar
1 ¼ cups lukewarm milk
⅔ cup lukewarm water
4 tbsp butter, softened
2 cups mixed dried fruit such as raisins, currants, golden raisins, dried cranberries...
½ cup candied orange or lemon peel, finely chopped
1 cup strong black tea
3 tbsp whiskey (optional)
Oil, for greasing the bowl
Mix the tea, dried fruit, candied peel, and whisky in a bowl. Let it sit overnight (or at least several hours), stir and drain any unabsorbed liquid.
Sift the flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt into a warmed bowl. Stir in the yeast and the sugar. Make a well in the center and add the milk and water. Mix well - the dough will be sticky. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead, dusting with more flour as needed until just slightly sticky and somewhat elastic (about 5 minutes). Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for an hour, or until doubled in size.
Turn the dough out once again onto a floured surface and lightly knead for 1 minute. Add the butter, the mixed dried fruit, and candied peel and work them into the dough until fully incorporated. Return the dough to the bowl, cover, and let rest/rise for another 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Butter a 9 inch cake pan. Turn the dough into the pan and pat to the edges. Cover and let sit in a warm place until the dough rises to the top of the pan.
Brush the top lightly with milk and bake for 15 minutes. Cover the dough with foil and reduce the oven to 350°F. Bake for 35 - 45 more minutes, checking often until the bread is golden. Transfer to a wire rack and cool. Serve warm, cool, or at room temperature with butter.
