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Pan de Muerto: This is “Bread of the Dead.” And thankfully, even gas stations sell it these days. Pan de Muerto is a very old-school pan dulce recipe made especially for Day of the Dead. The bread has a fluffy, eggy flavor, and is coated in sugar on the outside. Dig out your nicest plate, get your 99-cent Pan de Muerto, and place the bread at a central spot on your altar.
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Photos of Loved Ones: These, of course, are also essential. It’s best when the photos are frayed, old, and yellowing. But in the modern era, no departed soul would get mad at you if you snag a Facebook photo and print it on colored bond paper.
Sugar Skulls: Decorate liberally. (The chocolate ones are nice because you can eat them right off the altar when the dead aren’t looking.)
Fruit: Seasonal fruits are excellent offerings for an altar. In Mexico City, we use a lot of mandarins, guavas, and sometimes apples or pears. Another helpful energy source for the departed is bowls or piles of cacahuates — peanuts.
Cigarette: Humans shouldn’t smoke, but the dead engage in no risk at all when inhaling a bit of tobacco for a few choice hours, crossing midnight between November 1 and November 2. Set a single cigarette and light it just when you think your departed are closest to their altar.
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