The Real Witches' Kitchen: Spells, Recipes, Oils, Lotions and Potions from the Witches' Hearth

by Kate West

This modern Witch's hearth is in the kitchen, and for many Witches it is their workcenter. This book contains 100 spells and recipes where herbs, plants, and other ingredients are specially blended to create medicines to heal the body and the spirit, and foods and wines to celebrate the festivals of the Wheel of the Year.

Genres: Witchcraft, Nonfiction, Cookbooks, Wicca, Paganism, Spirituality, Magic

224 pages, Paperback

First published May 25, 2002

About the author

The author of over a dozen books, Kate West (United Kingdom), has become the U.K.'s most successful author on Witchcraft. She is the recipient of a Lifetime Contribution to Witchcraft award and has been recognized as the most popular factual writer on Witchcraft by Children of Artemis, the fastest growing Witchcraft organization in the U.K. and Europe. Formerly the Vice President of the Pagan Federation, West remains active in the Wiccan community, speaking at international Witchfests and contributing to magazines. She is High Priestess of the Hearth of Hecate and lives in North Norfolk.

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

First let me make one thing clear - I LOVE Kate West and her books, so if you're reading this review, then be forewarned; it may contain a lit-tle bias!
I though The Real Witches' Kitchen was not only a useful and user friendly guide for not only food, but bath and body cleansing produce and other concepts dear the green witches hearth. It had plenty of recipes, ideas and tips, but also just the right balance of information and history to make it informative yet not dull!
I love to get down and dirty, and keep my hands busy with my craft so all manner of spell working and creating those items that really would have been the staple of any hearth witches craft really is a favourite ritual of mine, and Ms West's books are some of the best! 5 stars.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this book years ago because it had alot of receipes for aromatherapy soap and i was really into soap making at the time. As far as all the spells and stuff, not my thing. But it has really great natural bath receipes in it.

[Caitlin M. · Rating 1 out of 5]

I rarely give books 1 star ratings but this was terrible. It seems like it’s copied and pasted from Google with random information. There’s also a section on weight management for witches — no, I’m not joking! The author actually writes: “sitting or standing in a slumped position will make you look and feel old, tired and fat.”

If I could give this book less than 1 star, I would.

[Sanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the best part of this book is the Sabbat section. I use it as a reference all the time. It is also the reason why I give the book three stars instead of two. The author uses the term "witch" as a synonym to wicca, which I find misleading. The book is very clearly about wicca and those who want to read about kitchen witchcraft can find far better books than this. The author uses less common names of some of the Sabbats, like Madron instead of Mabon and Imbolg instead of Imbolc. The chapter Looking Good, Feeling Fine seems to me a little out of place in this book and I don't agree with all the dietary suggestions. Plus, the author seems to assume that everybody who reads this book wants to lose weight. She writes that people do come in different shapes and sizes, but there is still thinly-veiled fat-phobia and and she also condemns people who are "too thin".

[Angela Jury · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book, easy to follow recipes, perfect to dip in and out of, will be used for many years to come.

[Charity · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really would expect a witch to be less pushy about diet and exercise, if you are triggered by those things I would recommend giving this book a miss.

[Rainy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a nostalgia read for me, I got the book when I was 10. First note, this book is not about “witches” in general, it’s all about Wicca and Wiccan beliefs. If Wicca’s not your thing, and if you’re not interested in Kate West’s specific correspondences, these recipes will be useless to you. Second note, “Garlic soup” is NOT a romantic recipe. Do not serve a garlic based dish if you are trying to be romantic. Third and final note, this book was not as fatphobic and irresponsible in its recipes as it could have been, for being written nearly 20 years ago. It still advocates putting essential oils in everything and taking herbal remedies, but it does say that they can interact with your medications and you should check with your doctors. For the diet section of the book, she does still encourage intentional weight loss, but she says that being thin isn’t the most important thing and to take care of yourself and not cut out food groups. Overall, the book was not as good as I remembered, but it wasn’t as bad as it could have been

[J. Kelly Brito · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't care for the spells part, but as far as food recipes, candles, soaps... it's great. One of my favorite books.

[K · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. As you would expect, it includes incense, oils, etc. I loved the recipes for holiday feasts.

[Bernadette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Found this book very informative. Well written. A good reference book to go back to.

[Kimi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although Kate West did that super annoying thing I hate where she says all witches are Wiccans or Pagans, I really enjoyed this book. She relies a lot on essential oils which I think is a crock of poop, but she also talked about certain foods and herbs and other natural ingredients than can be used for certain things and used science to back them up. So it was a good mix of stupid stuff and stuff that you can actually use at home to cook or make lotions and stuff to great effect. I'm interested in reading her other books to see if they were as enjoyable as this one. And I might even look into buying this one because there were so many recipes and stuff I wanted to save.

[Christian · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a Wiccan for near 8 years now i find this totally invaluable to my magical workings as well as that i find the recipes totally divine though its definitely useful for anybody who enjoys something new or is just looking to make soap (ive tried a good few and they are always used up in a flash) if youre a witch then get it, if youre just interested then get it!

If you arent interested then i dunno why you just read this! :P

[Tardisgirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been reading in this book of & on for several years. So it's hard to actually write a review about it. But I did find it very informative and interesting. It's very useful, and everything is explained well enough for the reader to understand. I'd definitely recommend it to others.

[Tasneem · Rating 3 out of 5]

A super book. I love Kate West and this book is so helpful and useful. I use it every Halloween for my Samhain celebrations especially, but also throughout the wheel of the year when I feel the need to honour the goddess and the god.

[Conure Hermary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome book! It is filled to the edges with spells, recipes and suggestions on how to makes incenses and even how to make your own soaps. There's good, useful tips in there to help you live a healthier life without being preachy or over the top. I proudly display this book in my library!

[Chloe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m a vegan and a lot of the recipes in this book aren’t vegan, so not as helpful practically as I’d hoped. Also in one chapter there’s a lot of talk of dieting which I found difficult to read and could be triggering.

[Simba · Rating 1 out of 5]

Mildly entertaining.

[KellyWells · Rating 3 out of 5]

good recipes for household things in here - all natural and using a lot of essential oils. Definitely a good manual to have around.

[Penelope · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very cute book with a good selection of information on Kitchen Witchery with a Wiccan flare, complete with useful recipes and spells.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book, it has a lot in that I will use. Kate west has a lovely way of writing, and she keeps things simple and to the point.

[Megan Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it.

[Sebbe]

How the hell do i read this book? Do i have to order it?

[Eve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written. I really enjoy Kate West's style of writing. Great information and a great addition to any magickal library.

[Christine Powell · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my older books, but one I turn to time after time for great information.