The Magical Deviled Eggs of Spring

Ah, deviled eggs. For me, the snow white beds filled with mounds of rich whipped golden yolks are not only a thing of voluptuous beauty –but possibly a perfect mouthful. So imagine my delight last year when I discovered Chef Jacques Pepin’s technique of browning them to caramelize and crisp their fillings. Pure culinary genius. […]

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The Cailleach’s Red Ale Cake: An Imbolc Tale of the Darkness & the Light

I’ve been celebrating Imbolc for over a decade and each year I discover more layers to its mythology and food lore. Last year over at Gather Victoria Patreon, I created a Cailleach Ale Cake (the oldest spirit in the world) in honor of the dark counterpart of Brigid,  the Gaelic Cailleach, one of the oldest […]

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Black Madonna of Montserrat: Chocolate Rose Crown Cake

I thought I’d share this recipe from Gather Victoria Patreon for two reasons. May is the sacred month of the Blessed Virgin Mary and in Roman Catholic tradition, roses are the emblematic flower of the Blessed Virgin Mary – and roses will be blooming shortly!  On May 31st  a “crown cake”  is typically baked “affirming […]

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

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 […]

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A Toast To Ukrainian Christmas: Wild Winter Berry Uzvar

I shared this lovely healthy Uzvar recipe with my Gather patrons last year, but I’m sharing it tonight in honor of Ukrainian Christmas and my beloved mother-in-law Rosie who passed away late November 2021.  For the many, many years I’ve been married, I loved hearing her remembrances of this holiday, how the house was full […]

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Mother Holle Cloud Tart w/ Cranberry & Hawthorn Berry Curd

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 […]

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Bewitching Maibowle Cream Cake For Beltane

Soon May Day Eve will be upon us – so I’m sharing this recipe posted last year at Gather Patreon.  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 fertility magic for literal ages. Said to bestow, […]

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Spiced Golden Rice Pudding For The Goddesses of Spring

This is an excerpt from the Winter Holiday Edition of the Gathery E-Cookery book on Gather Patreon In a culinary fusion of western and eastern goddess traditions, this Golden Rice Pudding is made with primrose infused cream and spiced with saffron, cardamom, orange zest and a touch of candied ginger. It is my offering to […]

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Brigid’s Magical Blackberry Scones w/ Bay Leaf Infused Custard Sauce: A Matter Of Celestial Timing

Today the ancient rites of Imbolc or Imbolg,  are largely observed on St Brigid’s Day on February 1st lasting till sundown on Feb 2nd. However, this Celtic holiday welcoming the first stirrings of spring and the arrival of the “bright” or “exalted” one, the goddess Brigid (Brigit, Brighid, Bride, Bridget, Bridgit, Bríde) was originally a […]

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Holiday Snake Cake: An Ancient Offering

Moroccan inspired M’hencha with spiced chestnut, chocolate and candied clementine filling. This year I decided to try my hand at a Holiday Snake Cake. The question was which one? Many versions of snake cakes are baked across countries from Italy, Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece, Morocco and Algeria, some are sweet and some are savoury and many […]

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Witches Sweets: Barberry Syrup Cakes

These were my very last-minute treats for last year’s Samhain celebrations. The Barberry Cake I made was a disaster, well one anyway. The other, while cooling outside, was carried off by crows. Casting around for a quick solution I came up with this simple sponge that takes all 3 minutes in the microwave. It turns […]

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