Tag: Llewellyn's 2022 Sabbats Almanac

Autumn Orchard Crumble

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Apples and pears are the quintessential fruits of autumn. They mingle beautifully in this Autumn Orchard Crumble. Warming spices such as cinnamon and ginger reflect the fire-colored leaves of autumn and counteracts its cold wewather. 

Prep Time:  45 minutes
Cooking time:  40-50 minutes
Serves:  8
  • Butter
  • Flour
  • 2 firm cooking apples (like Granny Smith or Fuji)
  • 1 soft cooking apple (like Jonathan or McIntosh)
  • 2 tsp lemon juice
  • 2 firm cooking pears (like Bosc or Anjou)
  • 1 soft cooking pear (like Bartlett)
  • 2 Tbsp ginger chips or minced candied ginger
  • 1stp ground ginger
  • 2 Tbsp white sugar
  • 1 Tbsp tapioca starch
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/4 tsp allspice
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 1 cup quick oats
  • 1 cup sliced almonds
  • 2 Tbsp flaxseed meal
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, siced (1 stick)
  • (For a gluten-free version, replaced the all-purpose wheat flour with a gluten-free flour. For a nut-free version, replace the sliced almonds with sunflower seeds or pepitas.)

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Butter a pie plate or large baking dish. Sprinkle about a tablespoon of flour into the pie plate. Tilt and tap the pie plate to move the flour around until it coats the whole inside.

Wash and pat dry the apples. Remove the stems and cores. (If you like your apple pie apples peeled, do that now, but it’s okay to leave the skin on.) Slice the apples thinly, but not so thin that the slices break easily. Put them in a large bowl. Sprinkle 1 tsp lemon juice over them and toss gently to coat the slices.

Wash and pat dry the pears. Remove the stems and cores. (If you like your pie pears peeled, do that now, but it’s okay to leave the skin on.) Slice the pears thinly, but not so thin that the slices break easily. Add them to the bowl of apple slices. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon lemon juice over them and toss gently to coat the slices.

Add 2 tablespoons ginger chips or minced candied ginger, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, 2 tablespoons white sugar, and 1 tablepsoon tapioca starch. Toss gently to gcoat the slices. POur theh fruit slices into the prepared pie plate and spread them out. Mound them slightly in the center and make sure that the outer edges stay below the rim of the pie plate, leaving room to add the crumble topping later.

In a large mixing bowl, sift together 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves, 1/4 teaspoon allspice, and 1/4 teaspoon sea salt.

To the flour mixture add 1 cup quick oats, 1 cup sliced almonds and 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal. Stir to combine.

To the flour mixture, add 1/2 cup of hte firmly packed brown sugar. Slice 1 stick of unsalted butter (1/2 cup) into the bowl. Use a butter cutter to combine the ingredients in the bowl. It helps to have a table knife to run between the tines of the butter cutter and knock loose the packed butter. Keep going until the mixture is loose, dry, and crumbly. The butter should be down to pea-sized bits.

Use a soup spoon to put the topping over the fruit, starting in the center and spiraling outward. Keep an eye on the amount so you don’t run out of topping before covering the whole surface. When you get to the outside edge, put the spoon on the rim of the pie plate and tilt it inward to avoid spilling. If there is topping left over after covering the surface, look for any empty or thin spots and in the topping and depost the extra there. Otherwise, just distribute it evenly over the top.

Bake at 350ºF for 40-50 minutes until done. The crumble topping should be toasty brown and crisp, not wet. The fruit should be bubbling around hte edges of the pie plate, and it should feel soft when a toothpick is inserted itno the middle of the mound. If the topping seems to be browning faster than the fruit is softening, you can make a tent of aluminum foil to minimize further browning. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before serving.

This recipe makes about 8 servings. Because a crumble dessert has no bottom crust, you will need to serve it with a spoon, bot a pie server. Popular additions include vanilla or ginger ice cream or frozen yogurt, caramel sauce, ginger syrup, cinnamon syrup, or gingersnaps.

Pumpkins

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Samhain: Pumpkins & Jack-o’-Lanterns by Jason Mankey

Despite our society’s obsession with pumpkins, most people know very little about them. Scientists will tell you that a “pumpkin” isn’t even really a thing; what we call pumpkins today are just several different varieties of winter squash. And despite often being thoguht of as vegetables, squashes are fruit. Technically a pumpkin is just a very large berry! Most of the “pumpkin pie” filling we consume each year comes from winter squashes that bear very little resemblacne to the orange pumpkins that sit on our porches in October.

Pumpkins are native to North America, more specifically the American South and Northeastern Mexico, and can now be found all over the world. People in Mexico began eating pumpkins nearly 7,000 years ago! Nearly every part of a pumpkin is edible, too; in addition to eating the lesh and seeds of a pumpkin, you can also eat the leaves.

Pumpkinsa nd other winter squashes are also part of the legendary “three sisters,” which have been a staple of Native American cooking for thousands of years. Beans, corn (maize), and pumpkins or squash were all grown together in garden plots. The maize acted as poles for the beans, while the broad leaves of the pumpkin plants kept the soil moist and helped to keep out unwanted bugs and other pests (pumpkin leaves are rather prickly!). When eaten together, beans, pumpkin and maize make for a very nutritionally complete meal.

Pumpkins are 90% water, maing them a low-fat and healthy food (though I’m not so sure about those pumpkin spice lattes!). Pumpkins are also an excellent source of vitamins and minerals including calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorous, and vitamins B, C, A, and E. Pumpkin oil can also help lower cholesterol. In Mexico, among certain Native American tribes, it was believed that pumpkin seeds bestowed energy and endurance upon those who ate them.

While plain old pumpkins are justifiably popular in the autumn, the pumpkin as the jack-o’-lantern symbolizes the season of Samhain for many Witches. But the exact origins fo the jack-o’-lantern are difficult to pin down, and among historians there is a lot of disagreenent about just how the pumpkin jack-o’-lantern came into being. Many have pointed Ireland as hte most logical place for the jack-o’-lantern origins. According to that theory, the Irish originally carved out beets, turnips, and later potatoes and placed a small candle inside of them. The candle was to symbolize souls stuck in Catholic purgatory and perhaps offer those stuck there a way back home to their relatives.

On the surface, this theory has always made a lot of sense. In Ireland, first Samhain, and then later All Souls’ Night (the evening of November 1), have traditionally been associated with teh dead, and a acandle for souls stuc in purgatory has always felt appropriate. But for years there was very little evidence for hte turnip-o’-lantern. Surprisingly, descriptions of lanterns made from turnips or beets are mostly absent from folklore. (They are also quite difficult to carve!) However, a turnip lantern dating from the 19th century was recently found in Ireland, givine more credence to this particular interpretation.

The term jack-o’-lantern probably comes from the trickster figure “Jack” who shows up in a variety of British and Irish folktales. Jack was said to be such a naughty fellow that upon his death he was denied entrance into both heaven and hell. However, the devil took pity on Jack and threw an ember from the fires of hell toward Jack, which the trickster caught in a hllowed-out turnip. From then on Jack was cursed to wander the earth until the Christian Judgment Day. This version of Jack became known as Jack-o’-lantern (Jack of the Lantern) and sometimes Stingy Jack.

The frist recorded use of the term Jack-with the-Lantern is in the Oxford English Dictionary from 1663, and it next shows u pin 1704 in a reference “Jack of lanthorns” (Skal 2002, 31). Both early uses of Jack-with-Lanterns were in reference to a night watchman, though our modern pumpkin-derived jack-o’-lanterns are certainly similar to watchpersons. Jack with the Lantern was often blamed for a variety of strange lights in both the British Isles and North America. Generally, these lights were the result of swamp or bog gas that looked like ghosts of lantern light in the dead of night.

Many holidays over the centuries have been associated with petty vandalism and the playing of tricks or pranks, most notably All Hallows’ Eve and hte Yuletide season. By the early 1800s, the term jack-o’-lantern began to tbe associated with pranks, though not necessaarily pranks at Halloween, or any involving pumpkins. It’s possible that pumpkins and jack-o’-lanterns came together in the 19th century as a result of Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, which was first published in 1819.

Halloween is never mentioned in Irving’s novella, but the public imagination has generally imagined the story as happening at the end of October. Jack-o’-lanterns aren’t mentioned either, but the Headless Horseman does throw his head at porr old Ichabod Crane. At the end of the tale, it’s revealed the Headless Horseman’s missile was most likely a pumpkin. When the scene plays out in the mind’s eye, it’s easy to imagine the Horseman’s head as a glowing pumpkin with human features, something very close to Jack’s old lantern. From there, it’s a quick jump to carved and lit up pumpkins being named jack-o’-lanterns.

No matter its origins, the jack-o’-lantern serves as hte nearly official symbol of the Samhain season. Glowing pumpkins gaze outward from porches in late October, scanning for trick-or-treaters, and pumpkin decorations haunt street corners and grocery stores. And for Witches, jack-o’-lanterns serve as a guidepost for the returning souls of our belived dead, inviting those we’ve lost to be with us once more. Whether we carve them, eat them, decorate them, or use them in ritual, the pumpkin is one of autumn’s most delightful gifts.

References

Morton, Ell. “Trunip Jack-o’-Lanterns Are the Rootf of All Evil.” Atlas Obscura. October 28, 2015. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/turnip-jack-o-lanterns-are-the-root-of-all-evil.

Skal, David, J. Death Makes a Holiday: A Cultural History of Halloween. New York: Bloomsbury Books, 2002.

Resources

[1] Llewellyn’s 2022 Sabbats Almanac: Samhain 2021 to Mabon 2022

Simple Midsummer Protection Spell

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Ancient people all over Europe are known to have celebrated Midsummer. According to scholar Ronald Hutton, Midsummer (as well as Midwinter) celebrations were common throughout ancient Britain and almost certainly employed fire. There is evidence of “the making of sacred fires at the opening of summer at at its solstice, to bless and protect people and their livestock fro the dangers of the season” (Hutton 2013, loc 7698). Fire was used to purify with smok, and to provide protection. Use a red votive candle and carve it with protective symbols such as pentagrams. Imagine ancient tribes of people at Midsummer creating protective fires for their livestock and villages. You are connecting with your ancestors and all those who came before by utilizing the power of fire, even if you’re merely lighting a candle. The fire is symbolic. It is pure power. As you light thecandle, visulize the element of fire forming a protective shield around you that deflects all negative energy and harm of any kind. You can imagine a circle of fire, a series of fires in a ring around you, or a sphere of fire that encompasses you like a ball. Even though fire can destroy, in this case it’s warding all harm away from you. Say these words three times:

Fire is power, and it’s mine to wield; fire is power, and it is my shield.

Allow the candle to burn out. Anytime you need to evoke the protective shield, repeat the phrase and visualization.

Reference

Hutton, Ronald. Pagan Britain. Yale University Press: New Haven adn London. Kindle edition, 2013.

Radiance Spell

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Summer represents the full bloom of life, a flourishing, vigorous time. No matter what your age, this spell is intended to help you channel the full splendor of a beautiful summer – the magic of warm evenings, fireflies, lsuh trees, and cool water. If seasons are life, then summer is the height – be your summer self, you most strong and beautiful inside and out. Embrace the fullness of life wherever you are. You are radiant.

For this spell, you will need a large mirror, such as the one you may have in your bathroom or bedroom – one that lets you see as much of yourself as possible.

You will need three candles of any size or color, butmake sure that you can hold one of them comfortably in your hands without burning yourself. (Use a container if necessary.) You will hold one candle as you stand in front of the mirror and place the ohter two on each side of you on a counter, table, or dresser. Try to catch the light of the candles in the mirror with you, if possible.

Light the candles and, as you view your reflection, say these words: 

Let the flames of candles three
show the traits that flatter me; 
inner beauty brought to light - 
Im radiant and shining bright.

Stan or sit that way as long as yo ucan. Meditate on you – your inner and outer beauty. Feel it. See it. Shine with the radiance of self-love. Reflect on who you are and who you want to be. Are you your best self? If not, why? What changes would you like to make? Take time to reflect on more than what you see, but how you feel. Know that you have the power to be your best self.

When you’re finished with your self-reflection, extinguish the candles or keep them burning as long as you wish. Keep using them for this purpose over time until they burn out.

Healing Light Spell

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  • Pocket mirror you can carry (compact mirror is ideal)
  • Enough candles (white, yellor, orange, red, or a combination of these colors) to make a circle around the mirror
  • Instrument to carve sun symbols into the candles (optional)

Your goal is to charge the mirror with both sunlight and candlelight and then use the mirror as a symbol for healing light. Imagine the mirror as a battery. You’ll charge it with both candlight and sunlight. Imagine both types of light as healing fire – the candle falmes and the radiant light of the sun. Harness both into the mirror. Every time you look into it, visualize that healing light reflects back to you.

You can do this in whatever order you choose – sunlight first, then candles, or candles, then sunlight the next day. Place hte mirror outside in full midday sunshine. Leave it there for at least one hour. Do this on the summer solstice or any bright day. Visualize t hat you’re capuring the light – this is one reason a compact works well because you can close it, figuratively caputring the light. for the nighttime portion of the spell, open the mirror in a dimly lit area and light the candles in a circle around the mirror. Let the candles burn out.

Any time you look at your reflection in that mirror, imagine the sunlight and candle flames and chant: 

Sun and fire, day and night, in this glass I hold your light; 
Healing rays of summer days, bring magic when it's in my sight.

Visualize the light flowing through you with energizine, healing power.

Rosewater Lemonade

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Nothing says summer like pink lemonade. This recipe adds a few extra ingredients to make it more magical. Strawberries add sweetness and color. Rose petals and rosewater evoke love and luxury. Lemons refresh adn uplift the mood, standing for the yellow sun at the height of its power. 

Prep time:  5 minutes for ice cubes, plus 10 minutes for lemonade
Inactive:  5 hours for ice cubes
Servings:  4
  • Fresh rose petals
  • Water
  • 4 cups water
  • 4 lemons
  • 1/2 cups strawberries
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 Tbsp dried rose petals
  • 1-2 tsp rosewater
  • 1/2 cup ice

Ice Cubes

Into an ice cube tray, pour enough water to cover hte bottom of each cubicle. Place in the freezer until the surface frosts over, about half an hour.

Wet the fresh rose petals, then place one rose petal into each cubicle, pressing down to contact the ice. Return the tray to teh reezer for half an hour.

Fill the cubicles to the brim with water. Return the tray to teh freezer until frozen solid, about 5 hours.

Lemonade

Put 4 cups of water into a high-speed blender.

Peel the lemons. Remove any seeds. Put the sections in the blender.

Rinse the strawberries and cut off the tops. Add the strawberries to the blender.

Add 1/2 cup sugar and 1 Tbsp dried rose petals. Add 1 tsp rosewater, then taste. You should get just a hint of rose flavor; too much and it tastes soapy. Add another tsp if needed.

Put in 1/2 cup regular ice. Use the “smoothie” setting, or process until liquefied. If you want pulp-free lemonade, strain it before pouring into glasses. Serve over rose petal ice cubes.

Store in the refrigerator for up to a year or tuck into the freezer. If you’re a home canner, process in a water bath canner for longer storage.

To serve, add two or three Tbsp of shrub to a glass of chopped ice and water. There’s nothing more refreshing on a hot summer day!

Heirloom Tomato Toss

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Tomatoes are the epitome of summer. They reach their peak in the long hours of the sun. Thse sweet, juicy vegetables are best enjoyed fresh right now. Unlike modern hybrids, “heirloom” or “antique” cultivars are open-pollinated and selected for intense flavor rather than shipping convenience. They come in many fascinating sizes, shapes, and colors. Red, orange, yellow, and pink symbolize the sun but there are also green, purple, brown, white, and almost black ones! 

Prep time:  15-20 minutes
Servings:  6 (1 cup) or 12 (1/2 cup)
  • 4 lbs of heirloom tomatoes
  • 1 bunch of Italian sweet basil
  • 6 Tbsp full-flavor evoo
  • 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1 Tbsp sweet marjoram
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 1 tsp thyme
  • 1/2 tsp rosemary
  • 1/2 tsp sage
  • 1/2 tsp cracked green pepper
  • 1/2 tsp fleur de sel or sea salt

Rinse and pat dry 4 lbs of heirloom tomatoes. Remove the stems and cores. Grape tomatoes and small cherry tomatoes shoul dbe cut in half. Larger cherry tomatoes may need to be cut in quarters. Beefsteaks and other full-size tomatoes should be diced. First slice them, then cut the slices into strips, then cut the strips into cubes. Just roughly chopping them won’t make a tidy salad. If some of the tomatoes have large amounts of slime inside, remove it and use the firm parts. Put the tomato bits into a big salad bowl.

Rinse and pat dry 1 bunch of Italian sweet basil. Remove the stems and large veins by tearing the leaf sides away from the middle. Tear the leaves into bite-sized pieces; you should have about a cup. Put the torn basil in a bowl.

Make the dressing in a clean jar with a lid. First, pour in 6 Tbsp full-flavor evoo. (If you have olive oil infused with any of the herbs in this recipe, you can use that.) Add 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar.

Peel and mince 2 cloves of garlic. Add them to the jar of dressing. Add 1 Tbsp sweet marjoram, 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp thyme, 1/2 tsp rosemary, 1/2 tsp sage, adn 1/2 tsp cracked green pepper.

Put the lid on the jar snugly. Shake briefly to cobine all the ingredients. This is not an emulsified vinaigrette, so you’re not trying to make a smooth blend, just distribute the ingredients equally.

Add the basil leaves to the tomato bits in the salad bowl and toss to combine. Shake hte dressing one last time and pour it slowly over the salad, tossing as you go. Finally, sprinkle 1/2 tsp fleur de sel over the salad.

Serve immediately. This recipe makes about 6 (1-cup) servings as a bowl or salad or (12 1/2-cup) servings as a side dish.

Note: In addition to standing on its own as a sald, the Heirloom Tomato Toss also makes an excellent topping for sandwiches, baked potatoes, tacos, chili, and so on. Use it for extra flavor anywhere that you would use diced tomatoes. If you like a leafier salad, put a scoop of this on top of Romaine lettuce of baby spinach.

Stuffed Strawberries

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Strawberries are a quintessential June treat, representing love and fertility. Fresh mint nicely mimics the leafy green top of a strawberry, creating an edible garnish. 

Prep time:  30 minutes
Inactive:  30 minutes or more 
Servings: about 12
  • 1 pint fresh strawberries
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • Juice of 1/2 lemon (about 1 1/2 Tbsp)
  • 1 (8 oz) package full-fat cream cheese, softened
  • 1/4 cup mascarpone cheese
  • 1/4 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 handful fresh mint

Set out the cream cheese to soften at room temperature.

Rinse and pat dry the strawberries. Pull off the leaves and use a paring knife to remove the stems, opening the core of the strawberries.

Zest a lemon. Cut it in half and juice one half. Save the zest and juice in a small bowl.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine 1 package softened full-fat cream cheese, 1/4 cup mascarpone cheese, and 1/4 cup powdered sugar. Mix in the lemon zest and juice. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and mix until smooth.

Put the cream cheese filling into a plastic baggie and snip off one corner. Squeeze the fillig into each strawberry.

Remove the mint leaves from the stems, discarding any damaged leaves. Poke a mint leaf into the top of each strawberry. Arrange the strawberries on a platter and chill in the refrigerator for at least half an hour before serving.

Summer Solstice Astrological Activities

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Depending where you live and what your communitity lis like, there are many ways to honor the solstice. Beginning in the morning, travel or face east to seethe sun rise. Invoke the direction of the east and all its creatures and plants, and any other associations you have with the east. Recognize solar animals, like Eagle, Hawk, Swan, and Horse. You may also visualize creatures of the water, such as Seal, and any other animal life special and unique to you.

Sun salutiations are a physical way to open to the Sun, feel your strength, and increase your life force. Remember to breathe well as you move, first raising arms and open hands to the sky as you breathe in, and folding forward agently toward the earth with head and hands as you exhale. Salutations can bea s simle as this, repeating the upward and downward flow, or other postures like planks, backbends, and downward dogs can be added fora yoga-style Sun A salute. Greet the season and yourself with gratitude and joy.

Use fire and smoke as a way of cleansing and releasing during this waning Moon. At sunrise or sunset, light a bunde of sage or mugwort and burn until there are glowing embers. Gently blow on the flame to diminish it, then sage around your body, shaking the bundle safely around your or someone else. (Be very careful around hair and clothing. You needn’t get too close to skin or hair to receive the clearing.) Working with mugwort is said to stimulate dreams.

Meditate on your tarot cards during solstice. Ace and Page of Wands align with both the fire energy of peak Suna nd with this year’s Moon in Aries, the first fire sign. The Chariot, long associated with the Sun’s journey into Cancer, and the Sun card, representing youth, are also cards of Litha. On your altar or windowsill, set up your solstice spell to invite the energy and vitality of this season. Crystals such as citrine, yellow calcite, or perhaps some rose quartz for the heart enhance your spell. Understand your own intentions at Midsummer and clarify any release you are approaching as you cross the threshold.

Spell to Break a Bond

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This spell is to be done when you wish to remove yourself from another person’s sphere of influence or cut energetic ties with them for any reason. This is best performed during the dark moon.

You will need:

  • Piece of hair belonging to the person in question
  • Piece of your own hair
  • Scissors
  • Bowl
  • Fireproof dish
  • Charcoal disk
  • Lighter
  • Dried bay leaves

Hold the two hairs together. Visualize the bond between yourself and the other perosn, which may be toxic and unhealthy. Allow yourself to feel the emotions this i nvokes, as you gaze at the entwined hair. You might feel sadness, anger, regret, or other unpleasant things while doing this. Now imagine your feelings are forming a mass of energy in front of your heart/chest area. This may look like a scribbled chaotic mess, a sad murky blob, or something else, depending on your relationship with the person and the nature of its discord. Visualize this mass of energy moving into the hairs.

Place the bowl in front of you. Using the scissors, cut the hairs into as many tiny pieces as you can, being sure to catch all the fragments in the bowl. If the hairs are too short for this, you can snip the scissors in the air around the hairs to symbolically cut what binds you.

Light the charcoal disk and put it in a fireproof dish. Carefully transfer hte hair pieces from the bowl onto the disk. As they hiss and burn, imagine the unhealthy ties that bind you together transforming into smoke and floating away.

Place a bay leaf on the charcoal disk. As it burns, allow the smoke to cleanse the area. Waft the smoke with your hand onto your face and body, feeling the purifying energy. You can burn as many bay leaves as you wish until you feel the spell is done.

You have now begun to free yourself from the unhealthy attachment. After a spell of this kind, there may be changes in your life, such as a breakup, a shift of circumstances, or some other upheaval. Keep in mind that in a truly toxic situation, thsi tupe of change is for the best.