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Winter

In Winter the Earth is Sleeping. She wraps herself in blankets of white and crystal as she sleeps the season away. All the while storing warmth within the depths of her soul.

Our homes become those warm comforting places in the cold of winter. With holiday festivities and gatherings around fireplaces, winter holds a quiet wonder that we can appreciate over a cup of hot chocolate. Think of the coldest night you can remember and how in your minds eye a bowl of hot soup warmed you to your bones. This is what a winter kitchen embodies; comfort, warmth, and sanctuary from the frozen world outside.

Decorate your scared space in the Kitchen with things that remind you of the sleeping season of Winter. Fill a vase with bare twigs and burn pine or evergreen scented candles to remind all that even in cold and darkness Mother Earth still has life. Traditional sprigs of holly make a beautiful centerpiece.

Yule is Celebrated on December 21st. This holiday is the root of many customs practiced today by other faiths. A tree, and Yule log are just some examples of how the Pagan traditions are still strong in the world today. Many of us have Christian friends and relatives. Here are some recipes that are great for your Yule Celebrations, but can be shared for Pagan and Christian celebrations alike!

Walnut Crescent Moon Cookies

1 cup butter
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 ¾ cups flour
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
2 tsp vanilla
¼ tsp salt

Cream butter with electric mixer on low. Add confectioners sugar, vanilla, & salt. Beat until light and fluffy. Stir in flour and walnuts until well blended. Wrap dough in waxed paper and chill at least 2 hours or overnight. Heat oven to 300. Divide dough into 8 equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface, shape each piece into rolls about ½ inch thick in diameter. Cut into 2" pieces. Shape into crescents. Put onto ungreased cookie sheet and bake 18-20 minutes. Remove to wire rack to cool. Cool Completely. Sift Confections sugar over tops. Makes about 5 dozen cookies.

Walnut Crescent Moon Cookies

Hot and Easy Taco Bake

Turkey and Wild Rice Soup

This simple soup is great for dinner after a long day of after Thanksgiving shopping, or putting up your tree as so many of us do on this long weekend! Remember to stir clockwise!!! Rice is a prosperity food so adding it to this soup will bring good money energy! Some thing we could all use during this holiday season. Of course you can also make this with left over chicken at any time of year.

Sweet Potato Biscuits

This is one of my new favorites. It seems like allot of work, but once you do it, you will see it is really easy! When I took a bite of these for the first time, all warm fresh from the oven all I could think was it tasted like home. Sweet potatoes have the grounding properties of regular potatoes, but also have love energy as well. You can used canned mashed sweet potatoes, or mash up the leftover candied yams you have in the fridge. Try and experiment! Let me know how you do!!!

The Best Double Crumb cake EVER!

I got this recipe from an unlikely source and tried it for myself. It is very sweet and has tons of crumbs. If you like store bought crumb cake this one will blow you away! As you dust the top with the powdered sugar, be reminded of how the snow dusts the Earth and the sweetness that still lays beneath even in the depth of Winter.

Traditional Cornmeal Biscuits

These Biscuits are great! I never knew that they could be so easy! They even reheat well. I like them for breakfast with a little grape jelly. The cornmeal in these quick biscuits is what gives them a defining flavor and texture. Corn has been a magical ingredient for many years. It represents prosperity, and a has protective energies as well. Because of its yellow color (in this case yellow cornmeal) it also carries Sun and Fire energy. This is a wonderful property to tap into in these cold winter months!

Traditional Wassail

Traditionally a Yule drink, this hot beverage was shared with friends, family and neighbors at Yule. Offerings were made to Mother Earth and to all her creatures with a portion of Wassail poured directly into the Earth on the Longest Night, the Winter Solstice. Because it takes a while on the stove to make Wassail, you can put it on in the afternoon and let it heat until your guests arrive for the feast. Notice how the aroma of spiced apples and cinnamon fill your home and make your Kitchen a warm and inviting place. Before your meal offer some Wassail to the Nature sprits around you and pour some at the base of a tree or wooded area.

Spicy Imbolc Chicken Bake

Imbolc or Candlemas is the day we celebrate the Hearth Goddess Bridget. The word Imbolc actually mean "Yew's Milk" and was the day when (in the time of the Ancient Celts) the yews would begin to produce milk. This was a tell tale sign that Spring was just around the corner. It is a time for sympathetic magic to entice the sun back to these cold days. So we are going to want to cook with HOT foods, spicy peppers and savory seasonings. It is also a time for dairy products. These symbolize the Goddess warming from within and the milk that she nourishes her child with. Try this EASY recipe and tell me what you think! This is actually what we had for our Imbolc dinner. It is full of Sun/fire energy do to all the hot peppers. The Goddess is represented by the cheese. This dish helps you to focus on welcoming the Sun back and warms you from within like the Earth is warming deep below the frozen world we see out our window!

Spinach and Artichoke Dip

With the New Years Celebrations come parties and gatherings of friends and families. And of course FOOD! By New Years Eve most of us have been stuffed with cookies and chocolates, ham and potatoes or more lasagna then any one person should consume! So how about ushering the new year with some simple but wonderful snacks like a warm dip that only takes about ten minutes to prep! I made this dip for the Yule Celebration at the Temple of Witchcraft and since it went over so well I brought some to brunch at my in-laws for Christmas morning. At the New Year we all try to make resolutions and new beginings. This dip prominatly features spinach, one of my all time favorate money foods! As you stir the spinach with this creamy mixture of cheeses visualize your money being surrounded by the nurturing powers of the mother represented by milk or in this case by the cheeses. Cheese is a joyful food bringing happiness and nurturing into the kitchen. Remeber the protective energy in the Garlic & Herb Dip mix adds to the saftey and security of your money through the New Year.

Cranberry Chicken

This recipes was one I have made many times over the holiday season and since SO many people loved it I thought I should include it in this email! This chicken is tender, and juicy and tastes like the holidays but is simple enough to make for a quick week night dinner or a New Years celebration. It pairs well with potatoes, sweet or white and just about any veggie! Chicken is a health and wellness food and cranberries hold many protective qualities. To share this meal with the ones you love is to share in the protection of your wellbeing for the New Year. While covering the chicken in this sweet cranberry glaze envision covering your loved ones in protection and wellness. Remember to use organic cranberry sauce as to stay away from ingredients like High Fructose Corn Syrup.

Splendid Sprouts

I made this Sprout recipe for a Yule workshop up at one of my favorite shops, Muse in Marlborough NH. I have had so many requests for it that I decided it was time to put it up here! It is a very simple recipe that can be made any time of year but is best when sprouts are at their peak, fall into the winter months. Because Brussels sprouts are actually in the cabbage family they hold the same properties most leafy greens hold...Money Magick!!! Here it is paired with bacon, another prosperity food. Combine the two with visualization of that new job you are after, that raise you have been counting on or just a little extra to take that vacation you have always wanted. Even people that claim not to like Brussels sprouts have gobbled this recipe up!!!

Cheddar and Spice Cornbread

Imbolc is a time to celebrate Fire energy. Though we don't generally think of warmth in Feburary, it is a time to encourage the Sun back to warm the Earth. So then, what should we be eating and cooking up in our witchy kitchens? One of my favorate recipes for Imbolc is this spicy sweet corn bread. So easy to make and it incorporates hot jalapaenos for fire energy along with corn which holds the symbolism of cycles.

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