An Alternative Guide to Cooking (Practically Pagan)

Chances are you are a kitchen witch if this book calls to you. I tend to gravitate towards baking more than cooking. I really love that the author Rachel Patterson mentions that cooking isn’t just about feeding but celebrating with family and friends. She mentions every single ingredient carries magic with it. Most of you have probably heard the phrase “baked with love”. Cooking and baking can have the same intentions placed into the food as spellwork. The author guides you thru the seasons with recipes to feed you mind, body and soul!

The book is broken down into 12 sections for each month. They include meats, vegetarian options, deserts, soups and more. The recipes are in measurements that are used for the UK and US (Celsius and Fahrenheit for example). You can use the easy conversion chart towards the back of the book for assistance. The book talks a bit about the month and the list of recipes you will find for the section. It focuses on what is typically available around that month or “seasonal” items.

My mouth literally watered reading some of the recipes and I can’t wait to try several of them myself. The chocolate and spice cookies and the cinnamon or chocolate buns may be whipped up in our house no matter the month!

I really like this book and the easy to follow recipes for the seasons. I have tried various recipes for the sabbats but had not previously thought much about a monthly pagan cooking style. This is the perfect recipe book for the Pagan cook to have in the kitchen.

~review by Amber Barnes

Author: Rachel Patterson
Moon Books, 2020
pp. 288, $14.95