The Sunday before Lughnasadh was often remembered as Bilberry Sunday. It was the day everyone climbed the nearest Lughnasadh Hill to gather little black berries - bilberries, fraocháin, blaeberries, blueberries, whortleberries - which they might wear as special garlands or gather in baskets to take home for jam.
Lughnasadh Recipes and Lore
Because Lughnasadh is a celebration of the new harvest, people cooked special ritual and festive meals. Some of the traditional recipes I find rather unappetizing and nearly impossible to prepare, given my lack of culinary talent, but blueberry jam and cake? I think I can handle those.
Bilberries
Bilberries, the first wild fruits, were a sign of the earth’s covenant with her children, so it was very important to gather and share them with the community. In early Ireland, bilberries were sent as tribute to the High King, according to the medieval Book of Rights:
On the calends of August to the king,
Were brought from each respective district,
… the heath-fruit of Brigh-Leithe;
Quantities were eaten on the way up to the Lughnasadh Hill of assembly, but the ones that managed to make it down might be made into jam or "fraughan cakes" or simply mashed with cream. A special treat was bilberry wine, which was most enjoyed by lovers, and had the reputation for hastening on the wedding! As was typical in a more neighborly society, some were set aside for those who could not make the climb. And some were also left behind on a special cairn or rock as an offering to an old, almost-forgotten god who first brought the harvest to Ireland.
The Lammas Bannock
In Scotland, the first fruits were celebrated by the making of a 'bonnach lunastain' or Lunasdál bannock, or cake. In later times, the bannock was dedicated to Mary, whose feastday, La Feill Moire, falls on August 15th, two days later than the date of Lammas according to the old reckoning. A beautiful ceremony, which, no doubt, had pagan origins, attended the cutting of the grain (usually oats or bere.) In the early morning, the whole family, dressed in their best, went out to the fields to gather the grain for the ‘Moilean Moire,’ the ‘fatling of Mary.’ They laid the ears on a sunny rock to dry, husked them by hand, winnowed them in a fan, ground them in a quern, kneaded them on a sheepskin, and formed them into a bannock. A fire was kindled of rowan or another sacred wood to toast the bannock, then it was divided amongst the family, who sang a beautiful paean to Mother Mary while they circled the fire in a sunwise direction.
Some modern recipes for traditional Blaeberry Jam and Pitcaithly Bannock follow:
Blaeberry Jam
Here’s a recipe for traditional blaeberry jam that comes from Scotland. Wild blaeberries (vaccinium myrtillus) are much smaller and tarter than the commercial blueberry, but the rhubarb in this recipe adds sharpness and texture.
2 lb blaeberries,
1/2 lb rhubarb,
2 lb preserving sugar,
(Makes 3 lb.)
Wash, trim and roughly chop the rhubarb, put it into a pan and cook gently until it starts to soften. Stir in the sugar and when it has dissolved add the blaeberries and bring the jam to the boil. Boil it rapidly for up to 20 minutes to setting point. Cool slightly then pour into clean warm jars, cover, label and store.?
(Test for setting point: test the jam by placing a spoonful on a plate, letting it cool and then pushing the surface with your finger: if it wrinkles the jam is ready)
From: Janet Warren, A feast of Scotland, Lomond Books,1990
Pitcaithly Bannock
8 oz flour,
4 oz butter,
2 oz caster sugar,
1 oz chopped almonds,
1 oz mixed candied peel
Set oven to 325F/Gas 3. Grease a baking sheet. Sift the flour into a bowl. Add the sugar and butter and rub in to form a dough. Add the almonds and mix in the peel, making sure they are evenly distributed. Form into a thick round on a lightly floured surface and prick all over with a fork. Place on the sheet and bake for about 45-60 minutes. Allow to cool and serve sliced thinly and buttered.
Posted by Angela-Eloise at 7:52 PM
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