On Christmas Day in Portugal, extra places are set at the table for the special feast known as consoda. At consoda it is important to invite the alminhas a penar, or ‘souls of the dead’. This custom originated from the ancient belief that entrusting seeds to the dead will provide for a bountiful harvest. The souls are even given a share of food at the table.

If you think that may be creating unnecessary washing up, spare a thought for the people cleaning up in Slovakia and the Ukraine after their Christmas feast. To begin their Christmas Eve dinner, the head of the family chucks a spoonful of Loksa towards the ceiling. The more Loksa that sticks to the ceiling, the better the harvest will be the following year. Loksa is made from bread, poppy seeds and water, which is really just an elaborate glue recipe.

An anonymous Slovakian said,
You get best results and the biggest mess if you have a textured ceiling. We've tried this and have found the mixture on the ceiling can be next to impossible to remove and when painted over, the poppy seed will bleed through the new paint. It does add quite a bit of excitement to your Christmas Eve dinner… From http://www.iarelative.com/xmas/loska.htm 

Here is a Loksa recipe: http://www.iarelative.com/recipe/loska.htm 

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