Hello, dear friends.
I am just popping in to share an exciting happening. The above image is of a new book from Womancraft Publishing; ‘The Kitchen Witch Companion’ by Sarah Robinson and Lucy H. Pearce. I am very excited, and not a little chuffed, to say that I have contributed four pieces of writing to it.
My little sharings are on nettle seeds, rowan, Catterntide, and cranberries and I have added recipes for lilac and nettle seed oatcakes, rowan berry winter syrup, and Cattern cakes. All the good things!
I have just received my own copy and I must say that it looks absolutely lovely. I am excited to read the contributions from other writers and look forward to curling up with the book in the lengthening autumn evenings.
Womencraft Publishing tell us that;
“This is a book to be read curled up in a comfy chair, before being covered in earth as you gather in seasonal goodness and splattered with sauce as you cook! The first half of The Kitchen Witch Companion is a nuanced reflection on the fantasy and reality of making magic in the kitchen. The second half is a seasonal collection of recipes and crafts, foraging and ferments, spells and simmer pots, meditations and blessings to inspire you to create, celebrate and gather throughout the Wheel of the Year.
The Kitchen Witch emerges with a waft of cinnamon, summoned up with the pestle and mortar crushing cardamom, with the harvesting of fresh rose petals. She emerges any time a pan bubbles or cranberries pop or the scent of melted chocolate or orange zest fills the air. She is there in the bubbling of yeast, the rising of dough, the whipping of egg whites or cream into billowing clouds, and the scent of freshly baked bread. She appears as spices crackle in hot oil and when boiling water is poured over fresh herbs in a teapot. She is there in a wonky birthday cake made with love or a stew for a grieving family. She is there as we gather the season’s bounty from our gardens – a bunch of flowers to mark a birthday or a passing: roses for love, rosemary for remembrance. Her spirit is in the smell, sound and symbol, freed in the process of cooking, of transforming one thing into another. She is real here and now, in this strange modern world, if we choose to engage with her, if we allow her to awaken the dormant kitchen witch within us.”
*Swoon*
If you would like to obtain your own copy of ‘The Kitchen Witch Companion’ you can get it in all the usual places, or via Womancraft Publishing at https://womancraftpublishing.com/product/kitchen-witch-companion/
Thank you so much to Sarah Robinson, Lucy Pearce and Womancraft Publishing for creating such a wonder, and for asking me to contribute. Henhouse is pleased too!
Ooooo freaking awesome!
Fabulous