The Goddess Feasts: The Magic of Gratitude, Pleasure and Plenty

April 17, 2022.Reading time 13 minutes.

This post is a sneak peek into Gather’s Patreon Cookbook which explores the “culinary goddess” found throughout history, folklore and myth. By this, I mean the “Lady of Life” who likely inspired cuisine itself. Whether she was called Isis, Inanna, Ishtar, Asherah, Astarte, Artemis or Cybele – to name but a few – the first […]

Mother Holle Cloud Tart w/ Cranberry & Hawthorn Berry Curd

December 21, 2021.Reading time 15 minutes.

Happy Winter Solstice! I’m sharing this recipe from the Gather Victoria Winter Magic ECookbook because it encapsulates the archetypal drama of the season – the rebirth of the light. And that meant plenty of cakes, cookies, and confections for the old winter witches like Frau Holle! Their symbols are very much alive in our holiday […]

Bewitching Maibowle Cream Cake For Beltane

April 20, 2021.Reading time 12 minutes.

Soon May Day Eve will be upon us – so I’m sharing this recipe posted last year at Gather Patreon. (Patrons will see a new recipe coming soon!) This Maibowle Cream Cake – made and glazed with Maibowle Wine – is infused with sweet woodruff, a pretty unassuming little forest herb linked with May Day […]

Golden & Sunny Fornacalia Bread: Goddess Magic for The Feast of The Ovens

February 15, 2019.Reading time 8 minutes.

When the landscape outside your window resembles an arctic tundra – as mine currently does – there is nothing better to turn to than warm bread fresh out of the oven. So appropriately, this hearty and flavour-filled loaf is dedicated to the Roman Goddess of Ovens, Fornax, and her February festival of baking. It’s a […]

La Befana Cake: Honouring The Old Witch of Winter

December 18, 2018.Reading time 12 minutes.

Inspired by the many Italian cakes baked on Epiphany Eve as offerings to “La Befana”, this fruity golden cake (with a dash of spirit) is a Witches Cake. According to legend, Befana is an old witch who flies through the night of January 5th on her broom delivering presents to children. And as they lie […]

Hot Cross Buns: A Recipe for Springtime Magic!

March 28, 2018.Reading time 12 minutes.

Right now every bakery to big-box superstore that is open has yeasty, doughy Hot Cross Buns for sale. Most feature large swipes of thick white icing that are irresistible, at least to me. Their popular longevity is amazing considering their history dates back to the dawn of civilization! According to a variety of food scholars, […]

Celebrate Spring! The Ancient Magical Language of Eggs

March 23, 2018.Reading time 2 minutes.

Coloured with magical dyes and painted with magical symbols, eggs have played a central role in spring rites and feasts for thousands of years. From Egypt, Persia, Russia to Europe eggs were sacred objects embodying the essence of life. For northern European peoples eggs embodied the fertilizing power of the spring sun because it was […]