This Week on the Pantry Shelf: Hallowe'en — The Night the Old World and the New Meet in the Kitchen

Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, which means the whole island is about to be full of small ghosts, superheroes, and slightly lopsided homemade costumes, all marching door to door in the dark with pillowcases and flashlights. The pumpkins are carved. The porch lights are on. And somewhere in a kitchen near you, someone is deciding how many fun-size chocolate bars is too many to eat before the trick-or-treaters arrive.

It's easy to forget how old this night is. Long before there were plastic skeletons and candy aisles, the Celts marked the end of the harvest and the start of the dark half of the year with Samhain, a night when it was said the boundary between the living and the dead grew thin. Bonfires were lit, costumes were worn to confuse wandering spirits, and neighbours gathered to share food and stories. The Scots and Irish carried those customs across the Atlantic, and many of them settled right here. In Gaelic, Halloween is Oidhche Shamhna, and the traditions that came with it, from guising (children dressing up and going door to door to perform for a treat) to games of dooking for apples, found a home in Cape Breton's kitchens and community halls.

One of the most beloved Maritime Halloween customs, though, is a little sweeter and a lot stickier: the taffy pull. Long before store-bought candy was cheap and plentiful, families made their own treats, and molasses was one of the great staples of Maritime baking. On Halloween night, neighbours gathered in a kitchen, boiled up a big pot of molasses and sugar, and then, when it had cooled just enough to handle, paired off to pull it between buttered hands until it turned from dark brown to a shiny, golden-amber ribbon. It was equal parts candy-making and party game, with a lot of laughter and a fair amount of sticky mess.

This week, we're bringing it back, along with the humblest and most reliable of Halloween snacks: roasted pumpkin seeds, from the pumpkin you've just carved. They cost nothing, they take about half an hour, and they make the whole house smell like fall.

This is a hands-on recipe, best made with company. Pulling taffy is a two-person job, and a good excuse for a kitchen party. Please read the safety notes carefully, because hot sugar can cause serious burns.

Makes about 40 pieces

Hot sugar is dangerous. Boiling sugar syrup reaches temperatures well above boiling water and can cause severe burns. Keep children away from the stove and the pan until the syrup has cooled enough to handle, and supervise any young helpers closely.

Know when it's ready. If a spot at the edge is still too hot to touch comfortably, give it more time. Burnt fingers are a bad way to end Halloween.

Keep it clean. Wash hands before buttering them, and if you're making taffy for friends or a community event, check for any allergy concerns before sharing (butter and milk products are in the recipe).

Consider the age of your guests. Taffy is chewy and sticky. It is not suitable for very young children (who can choke on hard or sticky candy), and it can pull at dental work.

From one carved pumpkin, about 1–2 cups of seeds

If you want to feed a hungry crowd before the doorbell starts ringing, try a big pot of Pumpkin Soup or a bowl of Colcannon, the Irish dish of mashed potatoes with cabbage or kale and plenty of butter, traditionally served on Halloween night. In old Irish households, the cook sometimes hid small charms in the colcannon, and whoever found one got a prediction for the year ahead. We recommend skipping the hidden objects, but the potatoes are still wonderful.

The first time I ever pulled taffy, I was eight years old, and I was convinced I would never get my hands apart again.

It was Halloween night, and my mother had decided, for reasons I never understood, that the trick-or-treaters could look after themselves for an evening. She had invited three neighbours over to the kitchen instead, and by the time we got back from our own round of costumes and candy, the whole kitchen smelled like warm molasses and the stove was crowded with big black pots.

"Butter your hands," she said, handing me a dish. "More than you think."

I buttered. She told me to butter again. Then she handed me a lump of taffy so hot it made me yelp, and said, "Toss it back and forth, and don't you dare let go."

I was paired with a neighbour, Angus Morrison, a gentle, white-haired man who had been pulling taffy for seventy years and who treated the whole process with the seriousness of a surgeon. He stretched his end, I stretched mine, and we folded it, over and over, until it stopped being a brown lump and started shining like caramel. My arms ached. My hands were stuck to my fingers. And I laughed so hard I got the hiccups.

When we were done, my mother cut it into pieces with scissors and wrapped them in wax paper, one by one, and let everyone take a handful home. I fell asleep that night with a pocket full of taffy and a sticky pillowcase.

I still sometimes make taffy for Halloween, and every time I butter my hands, I hear her voice. "More than you think." She was right, of course. About the butter. About the neighbours. About the way a night like that sticks to you, long after the sweet is gone.

This week, we heard from Jay in Toyama, Japan, who wrote in after reading our beet issue. He told us that the recipe reminded his wife to go out and pick the yuzu in her garden. She turned the harvest into miso, and they're looking forward to using it throughout the winter.

- Jay, Toyama, Japan

Jay, thank you for writing in from so far away. We love the idea of a jar of beets in Cape Breton and a pot of yuzu miso in Toyama, two kitchens on opposite sides of the world, both preparing for winter in the same way: by capturing the best of the harvest and tucking it away for the cold months ahead. Our readers are a lot closer to you than the map suggests. Please pass along our best wishes to your wife, and tell her we'd love to know how she likes to use it.

Have a kitchen story, a family recipe, or a note to share? Write in and tell us. We read every message, and we love hearing from you, wherever you are.

If your Halloween plans include something other than trick-or-treating, this is a wonderful time to tap into one of Cape Breton's greatest traditions: storytelling.

The island has a long, rich history of Gaelic and Celtic folklore, ghost stories, and tales of the supernatural, handed down in kitchens and community halls for generations. Around Halloween, many communities, libraries, and cultural centres host story nights, Halloween parties, and harvest events. Check local event listings, community bulletin boards, and your municipality's social media pages to see what's on near you.

If nothing's happening, make your own. Turn off the lights, light a candle, and ask the oldest person in the room for the spookiest story they know. You may be surprised how many they've been saving up.

Ready to explore Cape Breton's fall festivals and community events? Use our Cape Breton Travel Hub to map out your autumn adventure!

🍴 Browse cafes, bakeries, and local treats 📍 Get directions and plan your route ⭐ Discover seasonal events and cozy places to warm up

Whether you're hunting for the perfect pumpkin, looking for a Halloween party, or just enjoying the fall season, our interactive travel hub helps you find it all.

Start Planning Your Food Tour →

Kitchen Companion is a great helper for the day after Halloween. Tell it what's in your pantry, such as leftover pumpkin, spare candy, or a jar of molasses, and see what it suggests.

👉 Generate your own recipes: https://capebretoncompanion.lovable.app/

Every parent, grandparent, and neighbour who's ever stood on a porch on Halloween night knows the truth: you will need something warm to hold.

Our "One More Cup Won't Hurt" Cape Breton mug is the perfect companion for the doorbell shift. Fill it with hot cider, hot chocolate, tea, or coffee, and settle in. With its warm, hand-illustrated design of rolling hills, a rising sun, and a steaming cup, it's like a small piece of the island sitting in your hands.

And after the last trick-or-treater has gone home? One more cup definitely won't hurt.

Shop the "One More Cup Won't Hurt" Mug →

Halloween has changed a lot since the days of Samhain bonfires, but at its heart, it's still a night for gathering, for sharing food, and for being a little silly together. A taffy pull has all of that: a hot kitchen, buttery hands, laughter, and something sweet at the end.

Call a neighbour. Invite a friend. Butter your hands (more than you think). And make a memory that sticks.

Happy Halloween, Cape Breton.

From our kitchen to yours.