The Day of the Dead has become one of the most celebrated Mexican traditions, not only in that country but in various parts of the world, due to the magic and special color that is given to a subject as sensitive as it is. is death and above all, because of the way in which those loved ones who have gone before us along the way are remembered.
In addition to the spectacular catrinas, offerings or altars, one of the great symbols of the Day of the Dead is the traditional bread of the dead, which began to be marketed many days before the date and which today has a wide variety of aromas and flavors.
In addition to being an essential element in any offering, the bread of the dead has a special meaning, not only because of its peculiar shape but also because of what it represents itself.
BBC Mundo recently published an excerpt from an explanation about pan de muerto given by chef Carlos Ramírez on the portal of cultural dissemination of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), which says the following:
“The bread of the dead is one of the most traditional products of the Mexican bakery… it is part of our culture . No one celebrates death like us (Mexicans) in the world and it is something we grew up with.”
“It is a round bread that has ‘huesitos’ on top, which are a preparation hardest of the same dough. A little more flour is added and it is made with the fingers in that ‘bone’ shape. And the ball at the top represents a ‘skull’”, he added.
The origin of the bread of the dead
Although today we find all kinds of versions of the pan de muerto, from the traditional to the most gourmet, its origin dates back some 5 centuries.
The most known oldest comes from the chronicles of the Spanish conquerors.
At that time, the inhabitants of the pre-Hispanic towns prepared breads of different shapes but for the celebration dedicated to the dead one was made based on amaranth and dried corn that was called papalotlaxcalli, a Nahuatl word that means “butterfly bread”.
According to the chronicles of the friars Diego de Durán and Bernardino de Sahagún, papalotlaxcalli also had a shape that resembled that of the bones, although it was much flatter.
This was placed in the offering to the god Huitzilopochtli and once the celebration was over , it was distributed and everyone ate it.
In contrast, in the center of the country a rounder bread called huitlatamalli was made, which was more similar to a tamale.
After the Conquest, with the passage of time came the influences of European confectionery that finally collaborated with the creation of the pan de muerto as we know it today.
According to the UNAM anthropologist, Erika Méndez, indicates that in ancient compendiums of food you can find recipes for this bread, which was made with a basic dough that was flavored with different ingredients, such as anise, orange blossom water and sometimes orange juice or zest was added to give it a more special flavor .
“However, it is important to emphasize that this flavor is actually that of many other breads that are already prepared an earlier”, says Méndez.
The recipe for the best-known bread of the dead in Mexico City and the surrounding region only appeared in the mid-20th century, in the recipe book Repostería Selecta by Josefina Velázquez de León .
This is a round cake adorned with two crossed “bones” and a “skull” in the center. It is usually sprinkled generously with sugar.
But in other regions of the country it takes on different forms: it can be a donut, a triangle, a cross, a doll, braided bones, animals such as rabbits or sheep, among others.
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