Uncanny Fruits, Autumn Foraging & Chocolate Bundt Cake

From quince, medlar to barberry, I love to forage for the odd fruits which abound this time of year. The following recipe for this intensely moist almost pudding-like bundt, however,  is filled with two fruits I’ve not cooked much with before. It’s adapted from the Chocolate Cherry Samhain Bundt I just posted on Gather Patreon […]

Read More

Enchanted Crabapple Galette for Morgan Le Fay

Oh my, it is almost the Autumn Equinox! This means it’s time to share this rustic Crabapple Galette inspired by the Great Mother goddess Modron and the great Fairy Queen Morgan Le Fay. Crabapples and berries have long played a role in the magical lore of the Second Harvest or Mabon. (You can learn more […]

Read More

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 […]

Read More

Drinking in the Autumn Equinox: Magical Tea Wreaths

Note: I know I promised a recipe from the Gather Victoria E-Cookery book (it’s coming!)  but I thought I would share this Patreon post from last year first. I think it’s perfect for celebrating the seasonal medicine and magic of the Autumn Equinox.  I love creating seasonal Tea Wreaths woven with herbs and wild botanicals […]

Read More

Autumn Equinox: Celebrating Harvest Baking Magic & Goddess Cuisine

I’m sorry to have been out of touch for so long! I’ve been so busy finishing the next batch of recipes for the Gather Victoria E-Cookbooks over at Gather Victoria Patreon it seems I’ve spent nearly the whole summer working without posting anything new here. So to rectify that I’m going to give you a […]

Read More

Strawberry Tree Crumble Cake…The Magical Forgotten Fruit!

The Strawberry Tree (Arbutus unedo) is an ornamental shrub that grows all over the PNW but its abundant, plush, juicy fruits just end up littering sidewalks. Seems no one remembers we’ve been eating these succulent fruits for thousands of years!  Right now in the PNW the fruits are bright red & ripe with a mild, […]

Read More

“Soul Cakes” for an Old-Fashioned All Hallows Eve

“A soule cake, a soule cake, Have mercy on all Christen soules for a soule-cake.”  John Aubrey, 17th century I’ve been researching old world recipes in search of Halloween food inspiration, and these sweet little barmbrack “soul cakes”  are the result.  And while we may think of all things pumpkin when it comes to Halloween, originally […]

Read More

Cake For The Priestesses Of The Dead

Halloween takes its roots in ancient festivals and feasts honouring the dead, like Samhain. Which makes it a perfect time for cake…not just any cake, but a cake in remembrance of the Haliorunna. Never heard of them? They were the oracular priestesses of the “underworld mysteries” whose rites of divination and ancestor veneration were demonized and […]

Read More

Triple Dark Chocolate Cheesecake: An Offering For Hekate’s Night

“O night, faithful friend of mysteries; and you, golden stars and moon, who follow the fiery star of day; and you, Hecate, goddess with threefold head, you know my designs and come to strengthen my spells and magic arts; and you, earth, who offer your potent herbs to magic; and airs, winds, mountains, streams, and […]

Read More

Sticky Toffee Acorn Bundt Cake: A Prize Winning Recipe!

This moist, dense and gooey Sticky Toffee Acorn Cake was made from acorns harvested from my neighbourhood. And despite the nearly full day it took to create (from harvesting, shelling, leaching, roasting and grinding – to the actual baking) it was well worth the effort! It took first prize in a most wonderful old-fashioned community […]

Read More

Crabapple & Rosemary Hand Pies: Ancestral Offerings

A couple of years ago, completely hidden in a dark thicket of trees, I discovered a beautiful gnarled crabapple – gleaming with clusters of hundreds & hundreds of rosy, autumn fruits. I was thrilled! I love crisp truly tart apples (which are getting harder to find) so the crabapple fits the bill perfectly. Crabapples are […]

Read More

Spicy & Sweet Hawthorn Ketchup: Reviving a Traditional Recipe

Thick and robustly tangy, my all-time favourite condiment is good old fashioned “Haws Ketchup”. Made from the bright crimson berries of the Hawthorn tree (which you can find a stone’s throw away from wherever you stand in Victoria) it compliments roasted meats, scrambled eggs and a big basket of steaming homemade fries equally. A mainstay […]

Read More