Rachel Patterson's Blog

BeansBean(Phaseolus spp)Lots of different types of green bean – green bean, runner bean, French bean, garden bean etc.A climbing annual plant with white and sometimes red flowers (depending on the variety) grown for the ‘fruit’ of the plant…the green beans.Also included in this group are the beans that we use just the ‘seeds’ from such a pinto bean, kidney bean and broad bean.Basically a whole load of beans…In ancient Egypt and Greece beans were thought to contain the souls of the dead (quite small souls obviously) and you were therefore not allowed to eat them or destroy the plants.Linked to the ancestors the humble bean can be used in workings for wisdom and divination.Shelling beans from their pods was said to bring prosperity your way so use them for money workings.Apparently if a single woman finds a bean pod with nine beans inside she should hang it over her doorway…the next eligible man that walks through will become her husband (presumably whether he likes the idea or not…).Beans Magical Properties:Wisdom, divination, prosperityRuling planet – MercuryElement – AirGender – MasculineInformation from: A Kitchen Witch's World of Magical Food by Rachel PattersonISBN-978-1-78279-854-5Publication 26th June 2015Food is magical, not just because of the amazing tastes, flavours and aromas but also for the magical properties it holds. The magic starts with the choice of food to use, be added in whilst you are preparing and cooking then the magic unfolds as people enjoy your food. Dishes can be created for specific intents, moon phases, and rituals, to celebrate sabbats or just to bring the magic into your family meal. Many food ingredients can also be used very successfully in magical workings in the form of offerings, medicine pouches, witches bottles and poppets. Let's work magic into your cooking...

Chocolate(Theobroma cacao)Now where do I start? I have to tell you I take my writing job seriously and I do a huge amount of research…this particular subject took some time…and involved a lot of practical investigation…Chocolate is made from the cacao bean with a combination of cocoa solids, cocoa butter, fat and sugar then sometimes milk powder or condensed milk. White chocolate contains no cocoa solids just cocoa butter, sugar and milk which in my own opinion should be banned…bleuch!The darker the chocolate the higher the cocoa content, I have actually eaten 99% dark chocolate…it made my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth…not recommended but I do like a nice 70% dark chocolate or a milk chocolate or any chocolate really just not white…You don’t have to waste … ahem… I mean use your actual chocolate bars in spell work, cocoa powder works very well and it doesn’t melt which is always a bonus.We have the Mayans and the Aztecs to thank for coming up with chocolate originally in the form of a beverage which was believed to be of divine origin (and I whole heartedly agree). The cacao beans were used by the Mayans for currency so chocolate works extremely well in prosperity magic.Chocolate makes you feel good…FACT. It raises your emotional energy and gives you a warm fuzzy feeling so add it to any workings with that intent in mind.Chocolate is associated with the heart chakra so that links it perfectly with love, along with a very long tradition of presenting chocolates to a lady to win her affections.It is also nice to take a flash of hot chocolate to rituals…to help ward off the cold when you are standing outside in the middle of a forest with the rain pouring down…A mug of hot chocolate is also a good carrier to add other ingredients to for any magical workings.Chocolate Magical Properties:Prosperity, positive energy, happiness, loveRuling planet – MarsElement – FireGender – FeminineInformation from: A Kitchen Witch's World of Magical Food by Rachel PattersonISBN-978-1-78279-854-5Publication 26th June 2015Food is magical, not just because of the amazing tastes, flavours and aromas but also for the magical properties it holds. The magic starts with the choice of food to use, be added in whilst you are preparing and cooking then the magic unfolds as people enjoy your food. Dishes can be created for specific intents, moon phases, and rituals, to celebrate sabbats or just to bring the magic into your family meal. Many food ingredients can also be used very successfully in magical workings in the form of offerings, medicine pouches, witches bottles and poppets. Let's work magic into your cooking...

CheeseCheeseOh so many cheese varieties and made from all kinds of different milk and all so delicious! It is an ancient food (I am not talking about that old lump of cheddar stuck in the back of your fridge) pots used for separating curds have been found dating back to around 6000BC.Cheese symbolises everything coming together and a successful outcome.Add cheese to your cooking to bring positive energy in.Brilliant to use in ritual for feasting and if you are feeling inventive you can even cut a hard cheese such as cheddar into crescent moon shapes…seriously if you have the time to do that you need to get out more…It seems that the old wives tale of cheese giving you nightmares stems back to the stories about hags appearing in the night and being ‘hag ridden’ i.e. having nightmares, a lot of these stories included the consumption of cheese, the hag offering the unsuspecting person cheese and then turning them into beasts of burden.Cheese Magical Properties:Success, happinessRuling planet –SaturnElement – Earth, AirGender – MasculineInformation from: A Kitchen Witch's World of Magical Food by Rachel PattersonISBN-978-1-78279-854-5Publication 26th June 2015Food is magical, not just because of the amazing tastes, flavours and aromas but also for the magical properties it holds. The magic starts with the choice of food to use, be added in whilst you are preparing and cooking then the magic unfolds as people enjoy your food. Dishes can be created for specific intents, moon phases, and rituals, to celebrate sabbats or just to bring the magic into your family meal. Many food ingredients can also be used very successfully in magical workings in the form of offerings, medicine pouches, witches bottles and poppets. Let's work magic into your cooking...

Tea(Camellia sinensis)A good ole cup of tea (see previous chapter on The Magic of Tea).Your tea leaves are not only good for divination they also hold excellent magical properties. Tea is ruled by the Sun and the element of fire so it packs a huge powerful punch of magical energy.Tea is lovely to drink before meditation, helping you relax and let go of your worries.Tea leaves can be used in all kinds of magical workings to bring about courage, strength and prosperity.Tea Magical Properties:Meditation, courage, strength, prosperityRuling planet – SunElement – FireGender – MasculineInformation from: A Kitchen Witch's World of Magical Food by Rachel PattersonISBN-978-1-78279-854-5Publication 26th June 2015Food is magical, not just because of the amazing tastes, flavours and aromas but also for the magical properties it holds. The magic starts with the choice of food to use, be added in whilst you are preparing and cooking then the magic unfolds as people enjoy your food. Dishes can be created for specific intents, moon phases, and rituals, to celebrate sabbats or just to bring the magic into your family meal. Many food ingredients can also be used very successfully in magical workings in the form of offerings, medicine pouches, witches bottles and poppets. Let's work magic into your cooking...

EggsFrom teeny tiny quails eggs up to huge ostrich eggs they come in all sorts of shapes, the delicate outer casing containing the yolk and the white. Boiled, scrambled, fried, poached or sunny side up…how do you like yours?An egg is a complete neat package of life and is very symbolic of fertility, new life, new beginnings and creation itself. Within they also symbolise long life and immortality.Eggs were considered sacred in many cultures for centuries and a hardboiled egg was seen as magic in the Middle Ages.Very symbolic at Ostara the egg more often in its chocolate form has become a part of spring celebrations as a representation of new life and new beginnings.In legend faeries would consume eggs of mythical birds such as the phoenix.Throughout history people have eaten eggs for lots of different reasons, some to absorb the magical properties by eating them, others to ensure fertility.In the Slavonic and Germanic lands people also smeared eggs onto their hoes to ensure fertility for the soil.In Iran brides and grooms exchange eggs for fertility.In 17th century France, a bride would break an egg when she entered her new home for the first time.Eggs were often used for divination. This stemmed from the belief that eggs symbolised life and particularly life in the future. One method involved painting the eggs, boiling them and reading the patterns in their cracks. Another method involved tossing the eggs and divining the future, a system of divination known as oomancy. Egg white can also be used, by dripping it into a bowl of water and reading the shapes that it makes.In Egypt eggs were hung in the temples to bring fertility, for birth and renewal.The Hindu description of the beginning of the world saw it as a cosmic egg.The yolk in the centre of the egg has also been used to represent the Sun.I have put the gender as both masculine and feminine, in Chinese culture the egg as a flavour is seen as yang which is masculine but I see the egg as very feminine because of it being literally a baby chick.The egg is a complete set of elements in one handy pack: The shell represents Earth, the inner membrane represents Air, the yolk is Fire and the white is Water. Eggs Magical Properties:Fertility, creation, life, new beginnings, divinationElement – Water, Earth, Air, FireGender – Masculine/FeminineInformation from: A Kitchen Witch's World of Magical Food by Rachel PattersonISBN-978-1-78279-854-5Publication 26th June 2015Food is magical, not just because of the amazing tastes, flavours and aromas but also for the magical properties it holds. The magic starts with the choice of food to use, be added in whilst you are preparing and cooking then the magic unfolds as people enjoy your food. Dishes can be created for specific intents, moon phases, and rituals, to celebrate sabbats or just to bring the magic into your family meal. Many food ingredients can also be used very successfully in magical workings in the form of offerings, medicine pouches, witches bottles and poppets. Let's work magic into your cooking...

COMPETITIONTo win a set of FLOWER MAGIC ORACLE CARDS from Witch & Author, Rachel PattersonHead on over to my author facebook page:https://www.facebook.com/RachelPatter...~ Share the post to your own facebook page~ Comment below the fb post with your favourite flowerDraw will take place on 14th February 2020www.rachelpatterson.co.uk

HoneyHoneyHoney - the glorious nectar of the bees. One of the oldest foods known to man…and woman. Bees are incredibly magical and are often said to be messengers from the gods and the spirit world.Honey is sacred to many gods including the Egyptian god Ra and the Greek goddesses Artemis and Demeter and the Hindu gods Vishnu and Krishna.It is incredibly beneficial medicinally but also brings a good dollop of happiness with it.Honey can be added to any spell work or any culinary recipe to sweeten someone’s mood or disposition.Honey makes an excellent offering to the gods, the spirits and the Faerie world.Add a drop of honey to incense blends to sweeten the mood.Honey works well for happiness, love, prosperity and healing, it can also add a bit of zing to your love life too.Tell it to the bees…they are great listeners…when a beekeeper died folklore says that the survivors must tell the bees of their keeper’s death and persuade them to stay rather than follow their keeper to the otherworld.Anything important should be told to the bees such as marriages, births and other important events but make sure you whisper politely.Bees are also considered to be an image of the human soul, perhaps due to their natural ability to find their way home from great distances…if my soul were in a bee it would still get lost!And more importantly…honey is used to make mead which is absolutely delicious and wonderful to use in ritual and offerings…half a glass and I am away with the faeries…who actually like a drop of mead or honey as well…In the Terry Pratchett Discworld stories the main witch Granny Weatherwax gets her news from the bees, the see all and know all (if you haven’t read any Discworld stories…then why not?...go and read one now!)Honey Magical Properties:Happiness, healing, love, prosperity, passion, spirituality, faerieElement – Water, EarthGender – FeminineInformation from: A Kitchen Witch's World of Magical Food by Rachel PattersonISBN-978-1-78279-854-5Publication 26th June 2015Food is magical, not just because of the amazing tastes, flavours and aromas but also for the magical properties it holds. The magic starts with the choice of food to use, be added in whilst you are preparing and cooking then the magic unfolds as people enjoy your food. Dishes can be created for specific intents, moon phases, and rituals, to celebrate sabbats or just to bring the magic into your family meal. Many food ingredients can also be used very successfully in magical workings in the form of offerings, medicine pouches, witches bottles and poppets. Let's work magic into your cooking...

Coffee(coffea)A favourite caffeine fuelled brew made from the roasted beans (seeds) of an evergreen shrub from the coffea genus – usually coffea Arabica or coffea canephora.Now I have to admit I am a bit of a coffee wuss…it has to be a latte and it has to have heap loads of caramel syrup in otherwise I don’t like the taste much but I love the smell of freshly roasted coffee.Our wake me up, pick me up tonic has been drunk since around 800AD.Coffee brings the magical (and practical) boost of energy and clarity of thought. Although apparently in Constantinople it was banned at one stage because it made people too clear headed…It rates as a fire element but I have also added water as an element too because in liquid form a higher percentage of your cup of coffee is water.If you aren’t into karma or worried about free will…coffee can be used to encourage people to come around to your way of thinking or do what you want them to. Make them a cup of coffee and add sugar to sweeten their mood, as you stir the coffee visualise your desired outcome. In hoodoo bodily fluids are added to cups of coffee for much the same purpose…African tribes have been known to crush the ripe coffee berries, mix them with animal fat and roll into balls. These would then be served to those going to war providing the warriors with nourishment in the form of the fat and coffee protein and the caffeine high as a stimulant…I suspect it tasted horrible!Coffee grounds can also be used in divination just as you would read tea leaves.Coffee also works very well in hex or curse breaking spells.Add a drop of freshly brewed coffee to your bath water to help clear away illness.Add coffee beans to your incense blends to create not only a pleasant scent but also to bring protection to your home and dispel negative energy.I would suggest sticking to coffee beans or freshly ground coffee for magical work rather than instant as it tends to be stronger and have better results.Coffee Magical Properties:Energy, clarity, divinationRuling planet – MarsElement – Fire, WaterGender – FeminineInformation from: A Kitchen Witch's World of Magical Food by Rachel PattersonISBN-978-1-78279-854-5Publication 26th June 2015Food is magical, not just because of the amazing tastes, flavours and aromas but also for the magical properties it holds. The magic starts with the choice of food to use, be added in whilst you are preparing and cooking then the magic unfolds as people enjoy your food. Dishes can be created for specific intents, moon phases, and rituals, to celebrate sabbats or just to bring the magic into your family meal. Many food ingredients can also be used very successfully in magical workings in the form of offerings, medicine pouches, witches bottles and poppets. Let's work magic into your cooking...

I had the pleasure of speaking at the Wild Witchcraft Conference last year and was very honoured to be asked back this year (must have behaved myself...).It is a lovely venue and a really fun day.Join us for Lyceum Witchcraft’s 2nd Wild Witchcraft conference at Merchistoun Hall, a beautiful Grade II listed building located in four acres of beautiful wooded grounds in Horndean Village, Hampshire. (UK)During the day, there will be ample opportunity to socialise with like-minded people and enjoy the grounds (subject to weather). Please bring a packed lunch with you.2020’s conference has a wide selection of speakers, with many years of experience and a passion for Witchcraft.Tickets £20 (+ £2.15 admin) available fromhttps://witchfest.net/events/wild-witchcraft-conference/Speakers:Rachel Patterson - Best selling author & Elder of the Kitchen Witch Coven and online school of Witchcraft.Cristina Pandolfo - Ordained Dianic Clergy (Priestess), Esoteric Herbalist and Plant Spirit Healing practitioner.Diane Narraway - Author, Publisher, Chairwoman Dolmen Grove.Merlyn - Founder of Witchfest & Children of Artemis.Jonathan Argento - Events organiser, Animist activist Witch.fb event https://www.facebook.com/events/1646905342111534/

What a fantastic year 2019 was, although tinged with the challenge of hitting the menopause full on (seriously, 'challenge' doesn't even begin to cover it), for the most part 2019 was a success.It was my honour and pleasure to talk at several events in 2019:Talk on Sun Magic at The Enchanted Market, BracknellTalk on Witchcraft into the Wilds, at the Wild Witchcraft Conference, HorndeanInterview with Paul Cissell for You Tube - Spiritual ProductionsInterview with Sheena Cundy & Wendy SteeleWorking with energy workshop at the Sussex Faerie FestivalInterview with Quiet Rebel BureauTalk on Witchcraft into the Wilds at Witchfest MidlandsTalk on Kitchen Witchcraft at Witchfest InternationalAs well as the Kitchen Witch open rituals and a couple of very fun live Waffling Witch events.And books?Pagan Portals Sun Magicandthe third book in the Kitchen Witchcraft series, Crystal Magicwere both published in 2019.My oracle deck, Flower Magicwas also published in November.It was very exciting when Grimoire of a Kitchen Witch hit the 'best seller' mark as well!What will 2020 bring?Lots of events have invited me to give a talk, and I am truly honoured. Sun 5th January live with the Sunday Sofa gang.Sat 15th February I will be back again at one of my favourite events of the year, The Enchanted Market in BracknellSat 7th March sees the second Wild Witchcraft Conference in Horndean.Sat 16th May we are very excited to be back at the Faerie Festival in Sussex, such a fun event.Sat 23rd May I have been invited back to talk at Witchfest Midlands.4th to 7th June is my first visit to the Pagan Tribal GatheringSun 28th June I am pleased to be at the first Midsummer Fairy Festival held in Horndean.Sun 30th August will be my first visit to the Artemis Gathering.and Sat 7th Nov I will be back at Witchfest International in CroydonI have been invited to a couple of other events but sadly the distance (cost of travel/accommodation etc) has been too much of a challenge. But a huge thank you to everyone that has thought of me!For full details of events please see https://www.rachelpatterson.co.uk/events2020 booksMay sees the publication of my first cook book with Moon Books - Practically Pagan Cooking, which is really exciting!August brings my first book with the publishers Llewellyn, Curative Magic will hit the stores.Currently I have two signed contracts with Moon Books for books to write; Beneath the Moon and Kitchen Witchcraft: The Element of Earth...if I can just squeeze in some writing time somewhere...RitualsWe have three Kitchen Witch open rituals planned for 2020 in Horndean, full details can be found on the website. https://www.rachelpatterson.co.uk/ritualsSun 19th AprilSun 5th JulySun 20th SeptemberEveryone welcome (please note the new start time of 11am).Thank youI cannot thank everyone enough for your continued support, I am truly overwhelmed and feel incredibly blessed to be walking this pathway. I look forward to seeing you all in 2020!