Halloween is the one night of the year when bread is allowed to be silly. These are the four sourdough bakes we make for it: one new this year and three favourites. All four start with a lively starter, and none of them needs any special kit.
New: spider-web focaccia
Our newest bake. A bubbly olive-oil focaccia with roasted black-olive spiders and a crème fraîche web piped over the top. Mix it the night before and it is a 25-minute bake on the day. It is the one people photograph before they eat it. Get the recipe →
Bone breadsticks with "blood" dip
A few snips with kitchen scissors turn each strand of dough into a bone. Crisp outside, soft inside, and made for dunking in a bright red tomato dip. The best one to bake with children. Get the recipe →
Mummy cinnamon rolls
Soft, gooey sourdough cinnamon rolls wrapped in dough bandages, with two currant eyes and an orange cream-cheese glaze. No food colouring needed. For the softest, sweetest result, build a sweet stiff starter the night before. Get the recipe →
Pumpkin sourdough loaf
Roasted squash through the crumb, and four lengths of kitchen string tied round the dough before it proves, so it bakes into a pumpkin. Snip the string off warm and add a cinnamon stick for the stalk. Get the recipe →
Plan your Halloween baking
- Two days before: feed your starter so it is at its peak.
- The evening before: mix the focaccia dough, and build the sweet stiff starter for the mummy rolls. Both work quietly overnight.
- On the day: bake the rolls in the morning, the breadsticks after lunch, and the focaccia last so it comes out warm.
Need a starter in time for Halloween?
Our live San Francisco starter is usually bubbling and ready to bake with about two hours after it arrives. Free next-day UK delivery when you order by 2pm.
Ready to bake?
Browse our full library of 25 tested sourdough recipes.
Baking for Christmas?
Panettone, stollen, a Camembert wreath and a Boxing Day sandwich: see our Christmas sourdough recipes.
