Candlemas marks the beginning of spring (if you follow the Celtic reckoning ...

that puts the equinoxes and solstices in the middle of the seasons); or the middle of winter (if you follow the Saxon reckoning that places Midwinter's Day and Midsummer's day as the start of the seasons). On Candlemas, the lengthening of the daylight hours from the depth of winter has become obvious: Candlemas is the culmination of Epiphany, when the promise of the Light that was born at Christmas, is made truly manifest.

Candlemas is the Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, when Simeon proclaimed "Mine eyes have seen Thy salvation, which thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples, to be a Light to lighten the Gentiles, and to be the glory of thy people Israel."

This feast of Light is when the church candles, to be used in services for the coming year, are blessed. In homes, all the lamps may be brought together in one place and lit for a few minutes of prayer. In our house, we arrange all the oil lamps and candles on the dining table (excepting the Advent candles and the Baptismal candles, which are reserved for their own particular feast-days). We lay a fire, unlit, in the hearth. We turn out every lamp in the house, and leave.

We take candle-lanterns to some meeting-place, where we meet up with whomever we have invited to share the feast with us. There we light the lanterns and process them back to our house to bring into the darkened house the Light of Christ. Using tapers, we take light from the processional lanterns to light the fire and all the candles crowding the dining table. Last year as we lit the candles, we named friends from around the world -- including all of you -- for whose sake we would offer our prayers.

Then we pray, using the Collect for Candlemas and the Prayer for Absent Ones:

 Almighty and everliving God, we humbly beseech thy Majesty
 that, as thy only-begotten Son was this day presented in the
 temple in substance of our flesh, so we may be presented unto
 thee with pure and clean hearts, by the same thy Son Jesus
 Christ our Lord. Amen.
 O God, who art present in every place: We pray thee to protect
 with thy loving care our dear ones who are away from us. Let
 thy fatherly hand direct them; prosper them in thy way; grant
 them daily strength for their daily needs; and inspire in them
 an unwavering faith in thee, that they may live always to thy
 honour and glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Then we eat. In the wake of Christmas, it's usually a much simpler meal than the six-course feast that characterizes Christmas. Also, Candlemas isn't a statutory holiday, so dinner usually has to be something that can cook in a crock-pot or on the oven-timer while I'm at work. I don't know of any traditional foods; maybe we can invent something here! I've recently fallen in love with rice pudding, but I'd hate to make that into a holiday food and restrict it!

Last year, also, we made hand-dipped candles. That was great fun. The children can't wait to do it again. Sara_K had the wonderful idea of keeping the wax molten in a hot-water bath maintained by the crock-pot, which should help keep it simple. You could talk to your priest and see if he will bless your candles for you to light at family prayers for the coming year or, as a member of Christ's eternal priesthood, you could ask God's blessing on your household candles yourself.

Candlemas food: Isabella has no suggestions, but the Internet is a font of information ...

doubtless most of it spurious.

I found reference to

"Beautifully shaped loaves, including the famous pan de hilo,
 which is made into little animal forms to decorate the statues
 of the Virgin on Candlemas". 

I also found:

"Certain foods are traditional for Candlemas, including crepes,
 pancakes and cakes, all grain-based foods. Pancakes and crepes
 are considered symbols of the sun because of their round shape
 and golden color."
"Traditional foods are from dairy products and spiced with
 onion, leek, garlic, shallot, and/or olives. The wine may be
 spiced and the food may contain raisins. Bread puddings and
 creamy soups are typical."

Looks like my rice pudding might be particularly suitable, being both grain and dairy!

"Pancakes [and crepes] are traditionally served on Candlemas
 and Shrove Tuesday, to celebrate renewal, family life and
 hopes for good fortune and happiness in the future. It is
 customary in France to touch the handle of the frying pan and
 make a wish while the pancake is turned, holding a coin in the
 hand. In French rural society, crepes were also considered to
 be a symbol of allegiance: farmers offered them to their
 landowner" 

So Crepes Suzette would be another suitable dish, since you get to flambe them. I have a microwave recipe that's pretty good, and fits in my Tupperware Stack Cooker for a good, quick work-a-day recipe.