Juneteenth Foodways and Red Velvet Cake

Red velvet cake, This and other recipes below 

On June 19, 1865 in Galveston, Texas, General Gordon Granger declared all slaves free 2.5 years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed. “Juneteenth” (a mixture of June and nineteen) began thereafter in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma with parades and festivals. Food has been a staple of Juneteenth from the first celebrations and as a summer event barbecue with red sauce became a staple along with some mysterious reason red food and drink like strawberry drinks and red velvet cake. Juneteenth as a link with “Watch Night,” or the distinctive way African Americans have historically celebrated New Year’s Eve. I talk about this tradition in my book Hog and Hominy http://cup.columbia.edu/book/978-0-231-14638-8/hog-and-hominy/webFeatures. Watch Night dates back to the end of the Civil War. In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln declared his famous Emancipation Proclamation, which set slaves in Confederate territories free as of January 1, 1863. As a result, African Americans across much of the South held religious services, many of them secretly, in which they praised and worshiped God as they watched the New Year and freedom arrive at midnight. Thus, after 1863, African Americans began observing Watch Night and New Year’s Eve in honor of Emancipation Day. Southerners carried their religious traditions with them when they migrated north including recipes for good old fashion church cakes like red velvet cake. Here are some recipes below and additional links.

Red velvet cake recipe with great photos: http://pinchmysalt.com/2008/11/10/red-velvet-cake-recipe/

Vegan red velvet cake recipe: http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/recipes/vegan-red-velvet-cake-with-buttercream-frosting

Abraham Lincoln and Foodways: http://www.foodasalens.com/search?q=Abraham+Lincoln

Civil War Foodways with Recipes: http://www.foodasalens.com/search?q=Civil+War

Watch Night Series with Recipes: http://www.foodasalens.com/search?q=Watch+Night+