Enchantment Learning & Living Blog

Welcome to Enchantment Learning & Living, the inspirational space where I write about the simple pleasures, radical self-care, and everyday magic that make life delicious.

Cooking with Mercy Farm Turnips

August 24, 2022

Turnips feature prominently in Weep, Woman, Weep. Why? because I LOVE root veggies, including turnips. In fact, when writing this novella, I became more than a little obsessed with them, salad turnips, tasting like buttery radishes and purple top and scarlet turnips…there are a surprising number of different types of these humble root veggies.

Mercy, the central character in Weep, Woman, Weep, ends up starting Mercy Farm, and among the many vegetables and herbs she grows are turnips. In fact, turnips are the thing that gets her going on the whole idea of turning the land she inherited into a working farm. She later becomes rather famous for having some of the best produce—turnips especially—in and around Sueno, New Mexico.

The turnips become a symbol for the new life Mercy’s trying to build for herself from nothing but hard work and heartache—and a dream that she can be more than La Llorona’s curse running in her blood. I later learned that turnips are, in fact, symbols of success and better fortune. I love it when synchronicity is at play to show me that I picked turnips as a symbol of Mercy’s new path for a reason!

Of course, it took me a little bit to realize my obsession with this humble root vegetable wasn’t entirely normal. I had the pleasure of being invited to the Romancing the Gothic book club this past spring so the members could ask me questions about my gothic fairytale. It was then I realized that my interest in turnips might be a little, well, you know, strange.

The book club readers asked one simple and very important question: What’s up with all the turnips?!?! Aren’t they, like, gross??? There was many a horror story of boiled and mealy veggies that were enough to make even a turnip lover queasy.

As I draft the sequel to this book, Mercy Road, all this turnip talk becomes a bit of a running joke. Santos, the protagonist of that tale, had never really eaten turnips until becoming Mercy’s neighbor. But, as much as he loves Mercy and her produce, even he thinks she talks about turnips too much. To be fair, she’s been on her own for a long time, but still, there are other things to talk about! Perhaps over a delicious meal of…turnips.

Yes, Mercy’s got me “talking turnips,” too, as Santos would say. And the book club chat made me realize that not everyone loves root vegetables as much as I do. And though I have yet to grow my own successfully, I eat them constantly. If you’re even a little bit curious about how to enjoy turnips, here are a few suggestions below (and, honestly, how I usually eat them).

Salad turnips look like white radishes and are great in…salads. Just slice them up and add them to some greens. They are also great on crudite platters and dipped in aioli.

For larger turnips, like purple top and scarlet turnips, consider roasting them like you would potatoes. Olive oil and salt are all you really need, although adding cumin, green chile powder, or other spices add a nice kick.

I like to make turnip gratin when it gets colder out. It is delightful and so comforting without feeling as heavy as a traditional potato gratin. I’ve also been known to use pureed cannellini beans in place of cream when I want something even lighter. It’s still creamy, just not as heavy.

These larger turnips are also great in stir-fries because they really soak up whatever sauce you’re using and take on whatever flavor profile you want. They are also hearty enough to maintain a firm texture with no mushiness (that only happens when you boil them to death!).

And speaking of mush…you can mash them like potatoes, too, although with olive oil, chicken stock, and seasoning, they are a culinary delight. Add a sprinkling of gruyere, and it’s heaven!

Any kind of turnip can be pickled, too, and I often use them in my quick pickled veggies recipe.

So, as you can see, there are a lot of ways to use turnips. Do you eat turnips? How do you cook them? And, if you haven’t yet considered eating them, give some of these suggestions a try and let me know what you think!

Enchantment Learning & Living is an inspirational blog celebrating life’s simple pleasures, everyday mysticism, and delectable recipes that are guaranteed to stir the kitchen witch in you. If you enjoyed what you just read and believe that true magic is in the everyday, subscribe to my newsletter below for regular doses of enchantment. Want even more inspiration? Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Here’s to a magical life!

Healing Face Serum with Calendula & Vitamin E

December 8, 2021

If there’s one thing I hate, it’s overpriced organic beauty products that trick people into thinking that more money equals more healing properties. Not so! Over the years, as longtime readers of my blog know, I’ve made my own body butter, scrubs, and makeup that are just as luscious and eco-friendly as what you can get at a nice natural market—without the sticker shock.

One of my favorite beauty products to make of late has been this healing face serum, that hydrates and softens my face and neck. It will give you that eternally youthful glow! It also makes a great stocking stuffer and little extra gift for anyone wanting to pamper themselves.

I most often use my homemade calendula-infused oil in this healing face serum, although you can use plain almond oil if you prefer—you just won’t get quite the same healing properties. Calendula oil is perfect for nourishing and revitalizing your skin, especially in the colder months when our skin can start to look dull and rough. The vitamin E, raspberry seed, and rosehip oils all have wonderful vitamins that brighten and tone the skin and act as antibacterial agents to prevent breakouts. For a nice scent and extra anti-bacterial properties, I like to add a few drops of clove oil.

Healing Face Serum:

Container:

Small bottle with dropper

Ingredients:

1/4 cup calendula oil

1/8 tsp organic vitamin e oil

1/8 tsp raspberry seed oil

1/8 tsp rosehip oil

1-3 drops clove essential oil (optional)

Mix all ingredients in a small bottle and shake well. Store in a cool, dry place for up to six months. To use, wash face thoroughly and pat dry. Then add a few drops of this serum onto your palms and gently massage on your face before you go to bed at night or at the start of the day before you apply any makeup or sunscreen. You can even lightly dab a little extra around your eyes at night to minimize wrinkles. As you apply, think of the luminous sun-kissed skin of summer and the fiery delights of a summer love affair. Know that you can reignite this flame, even in the depths of winter.

Harvesting Sunshine for Rainy Days: A Recipe for Calendula Oil

November 9, 2021

I love Autumn. The season is like amber, distilling the joys of summer in its honeyed essence for future pleasure. It’s an important thing to do: cultivate and stock up on happiness, sunshine for rainy days. That’s why so much of my brujeria practice is focused on pleasure magic or the intentional conjuring of the luscious hedonistic energy in our day-in, day-out.

Let’s face it: we can get stingy with our joy. I blame this on the puritanical roots in Western culture that have made us forget our deeper and more profound pagan legacies that cultivate a natural sensuality in all things. Pleasure—that bone-deep, life-affirming stuff—happens when we live in harmony with the earth and the natural cycles of life. It’s when we listen to our inner voices that tell us what will truly fulfill us, not the loud mindless business of mainstream society. And it’s when we allow ourselves to dream, hope, and conjure things that make us feel good…just because. We can learn a lot about ourselves by understanding what gives us this unfiltered sense of happiness.

Autumn has always been the perfect time to reflect on these things, as we enjoy the fruits of the year’s labor while setting aside some of that abundance for the days when we can’t make our own sunshine. What do we prioritize when it comes to harvesting and preserving? What can’t we live without when the days get short and the nights long and cold? As I marinate on these questions, I’m drawn to the brightest of flowers: the humble marigold and her medicinal cousin, calendula.

While many people conflate the two flowers, these sunflower family members are actually two distinct plants with similar magical properties. First, there is the marigold from the Tagetes genus which is the flower we most often see in Dia de Los Muertos celebrations. Traditionally, this flower symbolizes the transience of life as it blossoms and fades fairly quickly, but I tend to think of it as more symbolic of eternal life. Even when the bloom fades, the petals are easily harvested and put to further use. You can also collect the thin black seeds and begin again. See? Life doesn’t end. It merely transforms itself, so long as you live in harmony with the ebb and flow of our natural rhythms. The marigold is also a very joyful flower. It’s hard not to smile when you’re holding a bouquet of orange, yellow, and red edible pompoms!

These flowers are also natural pest deterrents and extremely hardy, able to grow almost anywhere with little fuss or care. I love the metaphor of this: their sunshine magic banishes proverbial energetic bugs and promises us that our happiness is not as fragile as we might think. I like to harvest marigolds from my own garden or purchase from a reliable organic local producer to sprinkle in salads or to add a pop of color to my herbal teas. Every time I put a marigold in my mouth, I am reminded of the fire in my belly and a passion that cannot be tamed.

The marigold’s cousin, calendula, or Calendula officinalis, often more colloquially known as pot marigold or common marigold, looks like a yellow daisy. This is the flower herbalists and kitchen witches use to concoct healing potions for the skin. Every year, I love to get some locally harvested and dried organic calendula or pull it from my own garden to make calendula-infused beauty oil. I use it in everything from soothing face serums and body butters to hair oils and cuticle creams. Calendula is one of nature’s enteral soothers, softening the edges of our thoughts and acting as a healing balm to the soul.

These are the magical plants I come back to each Autumn in an effort to bottle and jar as much sunshine as I can for the coming months. I’m liberal with them all year round, wantonly planting them wherever I can and relishing their beauty from seedling to dried flower petals. These are flowers that remind me of the eternal summer of my soul even as I make my way through the various seasons of my life. I feel like I’m literally harvesting liquid sunshine!

These flowers are pure sun magic, a reminder that life doesn’t always have to be so hard, that we have the power to chase away darkness, the power to welcome prosperity and healing. Marigolds and calendula feel especially life-affirming to me in a post-pandemic world, as we relearn how to navigate the world safely and with joy, while not forgetting the sorrows of the past year—that’s Dia de Los Muertos marigold magic again, reminding us that we can mourn what has passed and still know the joy of transformation. Calendula is then there to protect us from the fear and anxiety that might taint our thoughts and illuminate the way forward with passion, warmth, and a generosity of spirit.

Neither of these fiery flowers will allow us to wallow or stagnate in the energy of the past. Instead, they invite us to move forward with grace, love, and more than a little creativity. Nothing is what it once was, but the marigold reminds us of our profound capacity for blissful metamorphosis. It might feel like death, but it is only a rebirth. Like Persephone returning to the underworld in Autumn, these plants remind us that there is much joy in turning inward, going slow, and basking in the honeyed abundance of the season.

As I prepared each year for Samhain and Dia de Los Muertos, for me a time to honor the Dark Goddess and release the dead parts of myself, I always make sure to make a batch of calendula oil and my healing face serum, one of my favorite ways to use this oil infusion. I use only organic ingredients since it is going on my body. As I make it, I think of all the glorious parts of summer, the parts of myself I want to give more light to, and the passions I want to nourish. I tend the jar through November, infusing it with gratitude and a deep appreciation for the love in my life and the abundance I’ve conjured this past year.

One of the great things about this recipe is that it is so versatile. You’ll notice I didn’t give exact quantities in my ingredients list. That’s because you should feel free to make as much or as little of this oil as you want. You can make it any time of year, but my personal ritual is to make it during the late Autumn. I prefer to use dried calendula as it is easier to work with (fresh leaves are more likely to go rancid). Similarly, I like to opt for the cold steep method, rather than the faster heated method.

I love the meditative process of allowing the oil to infuse for six weeks as I feel it gives it more time to absorb the good energy I’m imbuing into the concoction. Every time I use these oils, I’m reminded of the abundance mindset I cultivate day-in, day out, and the infinite pleasure I get from invoking the sun magic of the marigold and the calendula.

Recipe for Calendula Oil

Tools:

1 sterilized glass jar

1 bottle the same size as the jar

cheesecloth

funnel

Ingredients:

1 part organic dried calendula leaves

2 parts organic almond oil

2-3 drops organic vitamin E oil

Instructions:

Fill a clean jar halfway with organic calendula leaves. Cover completely with almond oil, making sure to leave about two inches of space at the top of the jar as the flowers will expand as they absorb the oil. Add a few drops of vitamin E oil to act as a preservative. Use a plastic lid if you can. If you have to use a metal lid, place a piece of parchment paper between the jar and the lid, as the metal can sometimes rust.

Let sit in a cool, dry place for 4-6 weeks, shaking periodically. Make sure to mark the start date on the jar to keep track of your infusion time. When I shake the jar, I make sure to consciously think of the medicinal and magical properties of this flower so I can infuse my good intentions into the blend.

When it’s ready, strain oil through a cheesecloth draped over a funnel into a dark bottle and store in a cool, dry place for up to six months. Use on its own or in body butters and oils. It’s great for eczema or sensitive skin.

Easy Preserved Lemons Recipe

July 18, 2020

Four months into my stay at home life and I’m finding that one of my greatest comforts is time set aside each week for a little kitchen witchery. There’s something about creating a lovely meal or tinkering with my herbal apothecary that keeps me grounded and nourished. It reminds me that while there is much I can’t control right now, I do have tremendous power in the energy I put into the world, the loving communities I protect and nourish, and the kind of magic I can whip up within the safety of my sanctuary.

Lately, I’ve been drawn to working with the kind of things we think of as kitchen discards: coffee grinds, carrot tops, and lemon rinds. My younger sister, an artist in Italy who specializes in making wonderful creations from life’s discards, first taught me the beauty of the used up citrus peel. There is magic in taking something that seemingly has no value and making it useful once more.

Of course, I’m no stranger to the similar magic of taking a bitter pill and turning it into sweet medicine, like the year I learned how to make limoncello, the Italian liquor made from lemon peels. I had been going through a difficult time—detoxing from graduate school, moving home, and trying to find full-time work. And, you know, all-around trying to figure myself out. This limoncello was my potion, my spell for turning even the bitterest of fruits into something sweet. I’d first tasted it when I visited my sister in Italy for the first time. It was midnight in Florence on the Palazzo Vecchio. I sipped a cold glass of sunshine and, for the first time, felt my heart begin to mend. Years later, I look back on that time—first drinking, then learning how to make limoncello—and marvel at the profound conjuring and belief it took to remake some of my most heartbreaking experiences and use them for the foundation of a more magical life. That’s the power of limoncello.

Now, I return to the wisdom of the lemon, and the wisdom of Italian living, with this preserved lemons recipe. This is something common along the coast, in towns like Capri where lemons plentiful. They are the perfect way to make the bright taste of summer linger all through winter and make a great addition to any meal, sauce, or cheese platter. Their salty, tart flavor adds unexpected depth to dishes and puts those often-discarded lemon rinds to good use. It’s also the perfect kind of quarantine cooking…you slice and dice a few things, then you let it sit, just like my easy marinated olives.

Not going to lie—when I get tired of the world and the voices who refuse to believe the two pandemics (COVID-19 and racism) we’re living through are real, I retreat into my kitchen to bottle sunshine. This is not in an effort to forget about what’s going on outside my door, but to get grounded and nourish myself so that I am a force for good in the world. We’ve been given plenty of lemons this year. Doesn’t mean we can’t turn them into something beautiful.

I also love the idea of taking something like a whole lemon—peel, pith, and all—and turning it into something delicious and edible. Although not traditional, I’ve taken to throwing in sliced lemon rinds from juiced lemons into this recipe so that nothing gets wasted. I only use organic ingredients, as usual, but this is especially important for this type of recipe which uses the whole lemon, including the outer rind where pesticides and other gross chemicals can hide if you’re using conventional lemons. Even if you don’t usually use organic produce, definitely use organic for this recipe otherwise you’ll end up with pesticide-flavored marinade, yuck!

This is one of those versatile recipes where you use what you have and make as much as you want, so you’ll notice I don’t give specific measurements. The quantity of each ingredient depends on how much you want to make. For a small jar, like the one pictured, I used one lemon, one rind of another used lemon, the juice of about two lemons, and a few tablespoons of salt.

This is the perfect recipe for when you’re feeling a little salty, a little sunny, and want to conjure joy from the bitterest fruits.

Ingredients:

Lemons

Sea salt

Lemon juice

Lemon rinds (optional)

Instructions:

Wash lemons thoroughly and slice into spears or smaller wedges, whichever you prefer. Slice lemons rinds the same way if you are using them.
Sprinkle sea salt in the bottom of your chosen jar until it is covered. Add one layer of lemons and rub them with salt. Mash with spoon, then add another layer. Repeat until all your lemons are in your jar. Top with more salt and mash once more.
Pour fresh lemon juice over salted lemons until contents of jar are fully covered with juice.
Close jar and label it with the date. Store in fridge for 3-5 weeks, shaking once in a while.
After 3-5 weeks, your lemons are ready! Use the sparingly as a little goes a long way. Lasts indefinitely.

Serving suggestions: Top thin slices on kale pizza, mince to put until salad dressings, pair with aged gouda, or include in meat marinades. Enjoy!

Easy Marinated Olives

May 26, 2020

One of the lighter sides of stay-at-home life is social media newsfeeds overflowing with home cooking experiments ranging from bread making experiments to creative kitchen-sink meals that help minimize trips to the store. People cook to feed their families, self-soothe, and otherwise relax and practice self-care. I love it! It’s like a collective conjuring of health and homey good vibes.

That said, as much as I like to cook, I’m not one of the home cooks that has a whole lot of energy for fancy recipes, much as I love to get my inner kitchen witch on. Teaching took a lot out of me which meant my own cooking experiments had to be easy, fun, and all-around low maintenance. All by way of saying, I seriously got into marinating olives.

Little dishes like tapas or Italian apertivo have to be some of my favorite dishes and I’ve been known to make a meal of good cheese, fresh crudités, and olives come summer Saturday nights. Add a delicious cocktail or glass of rose, and I’m in heaven!

Marinating olives has brought my happy hour fun to a whole new level. The trick is to start with a jar of good quality olives. I like Jeff’s Naturals, especially the castelvetrano and kalamata olives, but feel free to experiment with what the brands and olive types that you have on hand. You can also adapt the marinate to whatever portions you desire. Don’t have red wine vinegar? Use white or apple cider vinegar. This isn’t a standard recipe, per see, more like a set of guidelines. Think of this as a kitchen-sink recipe, where you use what you have on hand. I’ve never made the same type of marinade twice and I’ve had lots of fun experimenting with different herbs and spices. A strong citrus flavor tends to be my favorite, but play around and see what works for you.

This is a fun recipe when you want to try something new but don’t want to go full-on homesteader, baking your own sourdough bread or the like. It’s pretty foolproof compared to breadmaking and so utterly delicious. But I warn you, making these include certain side effects. You might find yourself putting on an old jazz record, arranging stray wedges of cheese on a plate, and pouring yourself a glass of wine. You might find, in short, that you want to put the world on hold for a bit and enjoy a lovely happy hour.

Ingredients:

1 jar of olives

1/4 cup vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

2 cloves garlic, sliced

2 organic citrus peels or slices (lemon or orange work really well)

4-6 sprigs of herbs (my favorites include thyme, rosemary, and oregano)

1/2 tsp red chile flakes

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp peppercorns

Add all ingredients except olive into a saucepan and simmer on the stove for ten minutes. Drain olives and place them in bowl. Pour ingredients in saucepan over olives, stir, and let sit on the counter until cool, about half an hour. Serve immediately, or store in a mason jar in the fridge for a few weeks. Enjoy!

Old School Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

September 21, 2019

Fall is finally settling over Albuquerque. It’s still fairly hot during the day—a whopping 80 degrees—but the mornings are chilly and the sun is setting earlier and earlier, ushering in long cozy evenings making stew, taking in nourishing stories by book or TV, and enjoying a fat mug of apple spice tea. And while it’s still not completely time to pull out those sweater and fuzzy socks, I find myself craving a batch of these hearty pumpkin cookies.

I have fond memories of making these cookies every fall growing up. Inevitably when the leaves started turning, we’d come home from school and eagerly pull out the older than sin Libby’s pumpkin cookies recipe. Yeah, the 80s add it came form was kind of creepy looking, but it made heallthy-ish, delicious cookies!

I find myself going back to this recipe each season as routine—or ritual—that helps me take in the joy of the changing seasons and welcome in fall. I got to talking to my mom about this as I began my search for that original recipe she shared so long ago. I went down a Pinterest rabbit hole to no avail, but my mom, the original witchy woman role model, found the original Libby’s recipe online. We were back in business!

Alas, neither of us eat that much sugar anymore and the original Libby’s recipe calls for A LOT. So I adapted my recipe from that old school Libby’s recipe, but cut out a lot of the sugar and butter, with the help of this recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction (thanks again, mom!). Like my She Works Hard for the Money Power Muffins or my Energizer Bunny Bars, these cookies are great snacks to hold you over when the day is fuller than usual. They are also perfectly delicious for a perfectly un-busy day, paired with a good book and a cup of my earthy Autumn Harvest Tea. Better still, I look forward to sharing this recipe with my little niece and passing on the tradition of making pumpkin cookies every fall.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1 1/2 cups oats

1/2 cup pepitas

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp powdered ginger

1/4 tsp cardamom

pinch of salt

Instructions:

Preheat oven 350.
Mix all wet ingredients until blended.
Add in spices and baking soda, powder, and pinch of salt.
Then add in sugar and, once combined, flour.
From there, add in oats and pepitas. The dough should be thick and a little sticky.
Drop a large spoonful of dough onto an unlined baking sheet and press into circular cookies.
Bake for 12ish minutes.
Enjoy! Makes roughly a dozen cookies. I like to store them in the freezer and pull one out for a quick treat.

Enchantment Learning & Living is an inspirational blog celebrating life’s simple pleasures, everyday mysticism, and delectable recipes that are guaranteed to stir the kitchen witch in you. If you enjoyed what you just read and believe that true magic is in the everyday, subscribe to my newsletter for regular doses of enchantment. Want even more inspiration? Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Here’s to a magical life!

Homemade Lip Balm

July 15, 2019

After all these years—and the countless body butters, scrubs, and makeup items I’ve posted about—I realized I have never once given a recipe for lip balm. Loco! Especially since this is one that I make pretty regularly and one of the first things I learned how to make all those years ago when I was a young girl watching my mom concoct all sorts of cool potions and lotions in our family kitchen.

I love this recipe for so many reasons. It’s inexpensive and easy and keeps your lips kissably soft. I reused my old chapstick tubes or pretty lip balm tins to make them. It’s a great way to avoid mindless consumerism especially if you are participating in Plastic Free July and trying not to buy things with unnecessary packaging. It’s also less expensive to reuse what you have.

And speaking of less expense, instead of paying $1-3 dollars for a small tube of chapstick everyday time I go to the store, I now spend roughly $2 on making over half a dozen lip balms! Plus, I know the ingredients in it and can tailor it to my preferences, which includes plenty of beeswax to seal in moisture.

It takes all of twenty minutes to make—and most of that is spent waiting for the wax and oil to melt and then, once poured into the containers, for them to cool. I make a big batch every few months. My measurements are rough guesstimates. I’ve been making lip balm for so long I’ve gotten pretty good at eyeballing what I need for how many containers. The measurements here will give you a big stash of lip balms to carry around, something I like because I use a lot—and keep some in all the rooms of the house. But you can always cut the recipe in half if you don’t want that much. I add shea butter to my recipe because I find it really helps to soften and hydrate lips. I avoid using essential oils or other scents, because it is on my lips. I also enjoy the soft honey scent it gets from the beeswax.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup shea butter

1/4 cup coconut oil or olive oil

1 tablespoon grated beeswax

Special tools:

saucepan

clean BPA free tin can or other heatproof bowl

cleaned old chapstick tubes or lip balm tins

Directions:

Place the saucepan on low heat and fill halfway with water. Then place the clean tin can in the center of the saucepan. Put the beeswax in the tin can and let melt slowly.
When beeswax is melted, add oil and shea butter. Let sit until combined, about 5-10 minutes.
While oil melts, set up chapstick tubes, making sure that the tube is wound all the way down. If you’re using only tins, make sure they are open.
Remove oil and beeswax mixture from heat and pour into lip balm tubes or tins.
Let tubes or tins sit until the mixture is set, about one hour.
Enjoy! Makes roughly six tubes or tins.

Strawberry Moon Juice

June 19, 2019

The strawberry moon is one of my favorite full moons of the year. It is the solstice moon, quite often, and one that asks us to shed our daily toils and enjoy the long, languid days of summer. I’m especially drawn to it during my year of sacred simple pleasures as it reminds me to welcome sweetness into my life.

So how do you go about doing something like that, you might wonder? Simple. Create space for things that make you feel divine and luscious like a strawberry ripening in the morning sun. Trust our instincts and let go of anything that clouds your skyscape. Allow your energy to open up to possibility. Then, like any kitchen witch worth her salt, you manifest it in what you conjure out of pantry items chopped, shredded, boiled, or stewed into yumminess. Or in this case, stirred.

Seriously! What we whip up in the kitchen is like an edible spell—even if we aren’t using a recipe or thinking of our well-stocked fridge as a medicinal cabinet and our spice cabinet filled with the powders and potions that stir the magic within us.

I’ve been ruminating on this all year and the unintentional energy we conjure in our lives as we choose to hold one thought in our minds over another. What we think, we become as the old saying goes. If that’s the case, I can think of nothing better than thoughts about the warm, lush energy of the Strawberry Moon—except for maybe this drink.

Like all potions, the love and energy you pour into making it is everything. I thought of the tangy surprise of an unexpected adventure as I juiced the lime and a sweet summer romance as I mashed up the berries. Then, as I topped my concoction off with a frothy head of ginger ale, I marinated on the power of spice and heat to liven things up. This is summer in a glass: sweet, spicy, bright, and full of promise.

I personally love Q ginger ale (minimal sugar) or Zevia’s ginger beer mixer (no sugar). I don’t like drinks that are too sweet or ones that give me a sugar rush, so these two options are perfect for a fizzy, spicy drink like my riff on the Moscow Mule. This drink was so good the firs time I made it that it wasn’t until hours later that I realized I forgot to add the vodka! But who needs it when you’re drunk on the heady possibilities of summer? Okay, sometimes I do, and you might want to try this drink both with and without it. Either way, it’s a delicious tribute to the Strawberry Moon and the loving sweetness it brings to summer.

Ingredients:

1 small can ginger ale

1 small lime, juiced

1 medium strawberry, chopped

1 shot vodka (optional)

ice

Muddle strawberries and lime in large glass until fruit is mashed and the liquid is a rosy color. Pour in shot of vodka, if you are wanting a cocktail. Add ice and top with ginger ale. Serves one, so invoke the lusty energy of the strawberry moon and make two. You never know who will arrive on your doorstep. Enjoy!

Healthy & Happy Face Toner

June 3, 2019

One of the joys of a year of sacred simple pleasures has been retooling my beauty routine. I got a fancy new hair cut that makes me feel fabulous. I’ve been doing bi-weekly honey facials (homemade of course!). And I’ve been giving myself regular DIY mani-pedis, without the nail polish since I’ve discovered that I don’t like it as much as I think I do. An earth woman like me spends a lot of time getting her hands dirty and walking around barefoot—not great for polished nails! Still, I like the time and energy I’ve been giving to pampering myself.

In what seems like a self-care cliche at this point, I light a candle, turn on an audiobook, and proceed to indulge in some of the more luxurious forms of taking care of myself. I’m no stranger to the harder forms of self-care—eating right, exercising, limiting stress—but I’ve begun to learn that the softer forms are important too.

I get to feel pretty. And, I’ve found, I like to feel pretty! Like reading romance novels, doing these little seemingly vain self-care things makes me feel like I’m more than a to-do list or a job. I get to be a woman with her own desires and hopes and dreams…corny, I know! But it’s nice to feel like I’m taking care of a part of myself that has nothing to do with my day job (much as I love it). It’s my time for me and me alone, with no outcome except that it makes me feel good.

One of my favorite part of this new beauty regimen has been this Healthy & Happy Face Toner that uses Vitamin C to brighten and tighten skin. I started concocting this new toner after reading an article about how important it is for us bronze-skinned women to include Vitamin C in our skin routine as it helps with sunspots and evening skin tone. It also reduces signs of aging and can stimulate collagen production. I wish I could remember where I read this, so I could provide a ink, but, as one of the delights of this new beauty routine includes reading more beauty magazines (the more natural the better!), I can’t recall where or when I got this information. Ops!

Still, since I’ve incorporated Vitamin C into my toner, my skin has been brighter and softer. Once again, I got inspiration from Wellness Mama, but instead of using witch hazel, I opted for apple cider vinegar, since I find using it in its watered down form has always worked well as a gentle face toner. The vinegar helps balance the ph of your skin and is anti-bacterial. Notice I said watered down, however. Both apple cider vinegar and Vitamin C are acids, which means a little goes a long way. You never want to put undiluted forms of these on your skin as it will be WAY too harsh. So be gentle with yourself and use only watered down versions of each.

I learned from Wellness Mama that Vitamin C (see link below for where to get it) degrades over time so small batches and refrigeration tend to be better. I make a bigger batch myself, since I typically share it with the women in my family. I also sometimes add clove oil for it’s anti-bacterial priorities and to soften the smell of the vinegar. That said, the essential oils are entirely optional—just be sure not to use more than 10 drops, because again, they can agitate the face if they are not properly diluted.

The best part about this toner? It takes less than ten active minutes to make!

Ingredients:

1 tsp Vitamin C powder

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

10 drops clove oil (optional)

Heat water in microwave until almost boiling, about two minutes. Stir Vitamin C power into hot water until dissolved. Allow to cool, approximately 20 minutes. Then add the apple cider vinegar and stir. Store in small mason jar or petite spray bottle.

To use, wash face thoroughly then dip (ideally reusable!) cotton swab in liquid or spray toner onto swab into moist but not overly wet. Wipe face with cotton, spending a little extra time on oily or problem spots. Let dry then apply moisturizer of choice.

Makes 3/4 cup. Use within the month or keep in fridge to extend the shelf life. Enjoy!

Beet Carpaccio

March 22, 2019

I love beets. They are second only to the humble radish, whose peppery bite will always be my first love…in terms of root vegetables, that is. But what the radish has in spring spice, the beet makes up for in earthy, meaty sweetness. And like the radish, the humble beet is best when you don’t do too much to it.

This recipe for beet carpaccio came about because I had purchased the most beautiful beets and meyer lemons from my local store. I swear, the lemons looked so big and juicy I thought they were small oranges! The eye-popping color of both produce items had me thinking of a tasty jewel-toned dish that would work as a Saturday night salad or starter.

…and you all know I’m always working on making my lifestyle more and more green, including in my cooking. Eating little or no meat is one of the best ways to cheaply and effortlessly help the planet. While I’m not a complete vegetarian, dishes like this, a play on the classic beef carpaccio, make me love being a veggie eater.

Meyer lemons are only in season so long, so if you can’t get them, regular lemons will do, as will oranges, if you want to play around with other citruses to get different flavors for your carpaccio. Just make sure you use organic produce (as always), especially because you will be using the zest. Non-organic citrus means you’ll be sprinkling pesticides in your salad as well as zest, yuck! I used pistachios in place of capers found in the traditional carpaccio, both to mimic the color of the brined berries and to add a touch of nuttiness. The homemade salt combo is what really ties the flavors together, however. The mustard, orange, and onion act as a savory sweet balance to the tart citrus.

Did I mention I love the colors of this salad? The dark red of the beets, the pop of green from the pistachios, and the sprinkle of yellow from the lemon zest…it’s a work of edible art, perfect for a fancy Saturday night dinner (in your jammies, natch).

Ingredients:

For salt:

1 tablespoon himalayan rock salt

1 tablespoon mustard seeds

1 tablespoon dried onion

1 tablespoon dried orange peel

For Salad:

1 medium beet

1/4 cup chopped pistachios

1 tablespoon lemon zest

Juice of 1 lemon

olive oil

1. Heat water in two quart sauce pan until boiling.

2. While water boils, wash and peel beet. Place in hot water and boil until soft, about 20 minutes. Remove from water and let cool, at least an hour. Then place beet in the fridge and let chill for a few hours. I like to cook my beet in the morning and then pop it in the fridge until dinnertime.

3. While you let the beet chill, combine ingredients for salt and place in salt mill or use a mortar and pestle to grind. Note: You will have more of this salt than is necessary for the recipe. Trust me, this is a good thing. It stores indefinitely and is great on all sorts of dishes, from a tangy citrus chicken to summery roasted veggies.

4. When beet is fully chilled, use a mandoline or sharp knife to cut paper thin slices of the beets. The mandoline is a little easier for this. If yo use the knife, the slices won’t be uniform (unless, of course, your knife skills are better than my so-so ones!).

5. Arrange slices in circle formation on two plates and drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice.

6. Then sprinkle a smattering of your fancy salt, to taste (I like it easy on the salt, myself).

7. Finally, add the lemon zest and pistachio pieces to each plate.

Eat immediately. Serves two. Enjoy!

Butternut Squash Steaks

February 21, 2019

I don’t know what it is about January and February, but I always find myself tinkering more in the kitchen this time of year, trying new healthy recipes. Maybe it’s the cold winter nights, maybe it’s the promise of spring and new things on the horizon, or maybe it’s just because I love the idea of trying something that shakes up my routine. In any case, I find that there’s nothing better come Saturday night than an old jazz record, a beautiful cocktail, and a crisp apron as I go about trying something new.

One such evening produced this lovely recipe for butternut squash steaks. Like my cabbage steaks, this dish is warm, hearty, and healthy—for you and the planet (one of the easiest ways to be eco-friendly is to eat less meat). It’s also incredibly versatile and relatively low-maintenance, once you get past the peeling and slicing part. For this recipe, I went old school and seasoned it with garlic and rosemary, but I have plans to try other more adventurous combos, like tarragon and shallots.

You will mostly be using the longer top part of the squash for this to get the “steaks,” but I recommend dicing up the remainder of the veggie and cooking them for a future quick lunch with tossed with lettuce and garbanzo beans or boiling to use as a puree for soup. You can do a quick roast of the seeds in a frying pan—no cleaning needed, just let the pulpy matter get nice and crispy. Yum! Go ahead and toss the remaining scraps in your compost—your worms will thank you and so will your garden. I’m all about reducing kitchen waste!

This squash is great on its own on a bed of lettuce (pictured here) or paired with a more elaborate meal for date night, with a side of green beans and mashed potatoes if you want to mimic the full steak dinner.

Ingredients:

1 medium butternut squash, washed

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped

salt to taste

olive oil

To prepare, cut off the top and bottom parts of the squash, no more than a quarter of an inch. Using a vegetable peeler, peel off the hard outer skin. Then cut bottom rounded part off and set aside (see above for ways to use those remaining pieces).
Lay butternut squash on its side and carefully slice it into 1/3 to 1/2 in slices, depending on how thick you want your steaks to be.
Rub steaks in olive oil, garlic, rosemary, and salt tot taste and let sit for twenty minutes.
While steaks marinate, heat olive oil in saucepan on medium.
Place 2-3 steaks in sauce pan (the number depends on how big your squash and pan are). Let cook on one side for 5-7 minutes, until browned and softened. Flip steaks and do the same for the second side. Repeat until all steaks are cooked.
Serve on a bed of lettuce and drizzle with olive oil. Makes 4-6, depending on how thick your steaks are. Enjoy!

Homemade Doggie Treats

December 19, 2018

When I say I like to make gifts for everyone in my family, I mean everyone, including the pups. (Okay, okay, lest that last statement sound too Martha Stewart-y, I should say that I’ve got a small family and we’re all pretty chill about the gift thing—but it’s still fun to treat them to some creature comforts!). I’m auntie to several cute doggies and friends with many a lovely dog owner and I love to spoil our four-legged friends with some easy and healthy treats this time of year. Bonus: making my own treats means not purchasing things with wasteful packaging, yay!

I modeled my recipe from one by Bitz & Giggles because I loved how adaptable versatile it was (also easy, because…you know me). The pumpkin puree can easily be swapped out for apple sauce, as my experiments have proved, and I’ve incorporated many a batch of apple-studded and chia-seed smattered oatmeal that I knew I wouldn’t be able to finish into these treats. I’ve even added yogurt in a pinch. I omitted the nutmeg and cinnamon, because, as their recipe states, those spices can be harmful to dogs in large amounts, so I didn’t want to mess with it. I also added a mix of white and wheat flour—enough to soak up the extra moisture from the cook oatmeal I mixed in.

You are not required to buy a doggie bone cookie cutter to make them. I did just because I think it’s cute and because I once tried to use festive holiday cookie cutters…but everyone kept mistake the doggie teats for human cookies. Ooops! You can slice the dough into squares if you want or use less human-being-y cookie cutters (or just be prepared for people to gobble a few of these healthy treats too).

You'll notice my recipe is a little iffy on the ingredients because I’m all for using what you have on hand. I make a bigger batch so I have plenty to give out, but you could always cut it in half. See what I mean about versatile? I would still cook them for a solid 40 minutes so they harden like a traditional doggie biscuit. I only did 30 minutes for the first round and they came out cookie-soft. Play with it and see what works best for you. All in all, these are fun to make and share with you furry friends. Plus it is super easy to whip up before the holiday celebrations and pop into the freezer for later gift-giving.

Ingredients:

1 cup canned pumpkin (or apple sauce)

1 cup water (or yogurt)

1/4 cup olive oil or coconut oil

1 cup oatmeal

4 cups white or wheat flour

Preheat oven 375. Pour wet ingredients in bowl and stir until combined. Then slowly add flour and oats until dough forms. If you’re trying to use up already cooked oatmeal like I did, then just mix it in with the wet ingredients, and add the flour after. Roll out to 1/4 inch thickness on floured surface and use your cookie cutter or knife to create shapes. Place on baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes. Serves an entire pack of wolves. Enjoy!

Enchantment Learning & Living is an inspirational blog celebrating life’s simple pleasures, everyday mysticism, and delectable recipes that are guaranteed to stir the kitchen witch in you. If you enjoyed what you just read and believe that true magic is in the everyday, subscribe to my newsletter below for regular doses of enchantment. Want even more inspiration? Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Here’s to a magical life!

The Occult Detective...with a Cocktail Recipe!

November 12, 2018

Each November, I love to write about stories that inspire, nourish, and delight. I think this is the perfect month for setting aside more time for reading. Autumn is well under way. The days are colder and shorter. The sanctuary of our homes calls to us as we settle into this contemplative month. We are drawn to quieter past times that give us space to reflect and heal.

Over the years, I’ve written about the important comfort good stories and other simple pleasures can offer us and the power various genres have to impart wisdom. This year, I’m waxing poetic about the Occult Detective…with a cocktail recipe thrown in, because I’m a big ol’ nerd like that.

Introducing the Occult Detective

So what are occult detectives? They are usually rough and tumble characters dealing with the darker side of life. Ghost hunters, if you will. Vampire slayers. Paranormal investigators. Monster fighters. And those drawn to the arcane knowledge of the occult and mystical.

This archetype is found in everything from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and all other monster of the week TV shows, to urban fantasy like the Dresden Files and the Bone Street Rumba series. But what most people don’t know (unless you are a diehard occult detective fan like me!) is that this genre has a long history dating back to the Victorian Era. The 19th century saw not only the birth of the detective genre, but also the fad of Spiritualism. Popular culture at the time was obsessed with understanding, studying, and experiencing the otherworldly via séances, spirit photography, and extensive research into the occult…much like we are today.

The Age of Spiritualism brought us the likes of Thomas Carnaki, inventor of the electric pentacle; Flaxman Low, a self-proclaimed supernatural detective; and, Diana Marburg, a palmist who solves murders. Then there’s Dr. John Silence, the first Victorian occult detective I ever read about, who will always have a place in my heart for introducing me to the genre. He has a mysterious past, training in the occult, and cool animal helpers like his cat Smoke and his dog Flame.

At their best, these stories explored our relationship to the otherworldly and our curiosity about things outside ourselves. They show how we grapple with the mysterious, unseen forces in this world (and beyond!), the things that often reach out in touch us in our life but that we can’t always explain away or even logically process…at their worst, we get ugly things like sexism, xenophobia, and racism. The supernatural becomes a catch-all terms for anything that isn’t white, hetero, middle-class, or male, and thus, to be feared. Yikes!

A Genre of Transformation

My favorite part about this genre is that is has transformed over the centuries from a genre of xenophobia to one of hope and empowering explorations of otherness. Women, people of color, LGTBQ+ communities, people with disabilities, and, yes, supernatural beings are front and center in contemporary additions to the genre. We’ve got Maggie Hoaskie, a Navajo monster hunter in Trail of Lighting; Tony Foster, a gay wizard in Smoke and Mirrors; Kate Daniels, a magical mercenary and woman of color in a post-apocalyptic world; the canonical bi-sexual John Constantine; and many stories out of Occult Detective Quarterly that aims to make the genre more inclusive by representing both diverse characters and authors….just to name a few. And that’s barely scratched the surface. I mean, I haven’t even gotten into TV shows yet (I’m talking to you, Sleepy Hollow, Wynona Erp, Supernatural, Lucifer and. So. Many. Others).

Perhaps what I love most about this genre is that it’s all about how magic is a hard, gritty thing. In one way or another, these stories are about what it takes to be true to yourself in a worlds that doesn’t like marginalized bodies, otherness, and those living on the social periphery. Better still, these stories teach us that living within liminal spaces—not just a human but a werewolf (Kitty Norville), not just a woman but a witch (Persephone Alcmedi), or a half-dead resurrected inbetweener (Carlos Delacruz)—is empowering, transformational even. This liminal space we occupy is the crack where the light seeps in.

In the end, this genre, and the occult detective archetype, doesn’t just grapple with the paranormal, but perhaps the even more inscrutable concept of what it means to be human…even when you’re a ghost, werewolf, or technically undead.

The Recipe

All which means that this genre deserves a drink and so do you! I thought about pairing various stories with treats and drinks, but really, there are so many manifestations of this archetype, from cozy mysteries like the Juliet Blackwell’s Witchcraft series to dark horror like Mike Carey’s Felix Castor books. I even thought of making a cocktail called the Hellblazer…before I realized that would just be a bottle of Jack and a pack of cigarettes.

So I came up with a cocktail that captured the spirit (pun intended) of the genre instead. This is a riff on the Manhattan, using Amaro liquor instead of vermouth. Amor is an intensely herbaceous, bitter Italian liquor, there perfect nod to hellfire and brimstone, two things any occult detective worth their salt should know how to handle. Then add a dash of burnt orange bitters for a touch of the ghostly (though regular orange bitters would do just a well), and another dash of cinnamon bitters as the sin that warms your bones and promises a slew of bad—but delicious—decisions. Bourbon holds it all together, balancing the punch of Amaro and bitters with the fullness of vanilla and earth—the underlying hope and hard-earned sweetness inherent in the genre.

This drink is perfect after a hard day of proverbial monster hunting or an even longer night of literal vampire slaying.

Ingredients:

.5 oz Amaro liquor

2 oz bourbon

2 dashes burnt orange bitters

2 dashes cinnamon bitters

ice

Mix ingredients in a shaker and shake for one minute. Pour into a martini glass. Garnish with a cinnamon stick, orange peel slice, .and the ashes of the demons you’ve slayed—cinnamon stick and orange peel slice optional. Pair with a dark and stormy night and any of the occult detective stories mentioned here or pictured below. Serves one. Enjoy!

Enchantment Learning & Living is an inspirational collection of musings touching on life’s simple pleasures, everyday fantasy, and absolutely delectable recipes that will guarantee to stir the kitchen witch in you. If you enjoyed what you just read and believe that true magic is the everyday, subscribe here.

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Witch's Brew Cocktail

October 7, 2018

It’s been awhile since I’ve concocted a cocktail recipe, and even longer since I’ve come up with one for Halloween. I love a good cocktail because they’ve always struck me as one of the most basic kind of potions. Think about it: a good cocktail can give us liquid courage, exorcise a hard work week, or even act as a temporary love spell. And as will all potions and spells, the medicine is in the dosage. Too much and it’s poison, too little and your Friday night is perhaps a little less adventurous (wink wink).

It bears repeating that I like to avoid syrupy or excessively sugary ingredients and stick to clean tastes modeled after the classics when it comes to cocktail making. I do this because most novelty cocktail—a la Halloween drinks—are sugar bombs. Not my idea of a good time or a tasty drink. Although I call these Halloween-inspired concoctions, I have been known to drink the throughout the year, especially the green fairy, a tasty absinthe-kissed cocktail perfect for ending the workweek and stirring up some writing inspiration for the weekend.

Lately, come Saturday night, I’ve been experimenting with this new drink: Witch’s Brew. It was inspired by my garden and all the herbs I cultivate there: rosemary, lavender, sage…all delicious, all medicinal, all typically associated with healers and witches because of their various magical and healing properties. I started wondering how I could fold those flavors into a tasty magical brew.

I used gin as the base because of herbaciousness and went for a bold choice of mixer: chartreuse. It’s what gives this drink the verdant green color we typically associate with potions. It’s also an ancient healing tincture made from over 130 herbs. It tastes fresh, like mint and fennel, with the other herbs as a strong supporting cast. Yum! I paired this refreshing taste with lime because I love a good gimlet and its variants.

The real kicker to this is what I do with the gin. I infuse it with green apples—who doesn’t think of witches without thinking of forbidden fruit?—along with rosemary and a few juniper berries to make the herbaciousness of the gin really pop. Also because I love rosemary, the natural protector of the herb world. Juniper berries are also fast becoming a kitchen witch staple in my home. Did you know juniper both protects good energy and repels the negative? If that’s not magical, I don’t know what is! Add a dash of bay leaf bitters, for the leaf’s powers of divination.

As with all spells (and drinks), feel free to play with the recipe. Chartreuse might be a bit pricy for some (though a little goes a long way so it will last a while!), try swapping it out with rosemary or ginger simple syrup or apple schnapps (or both!)—it will change the flavor, but will no doubt be equally festive, if with more sugar. The infused gin makes about two cups of yum—plenty to experiment with or to whip up a magical batch of this brew.

All good spells require a little time, a little love, and quality ingredients. While this cocktail is a touch more labor-intensive than my others in that you first need a week to infuse the gin, it’s worth it. Plus, while you wait, you can prepare the right kind of energy you want to infuse into this brew. Do you need a little more magic in your life? A little more mischief? A dash of hope or a heading dose of healing? Whatever you need, let it brew until you’re ready to infuse it into a batch of this tasty elixir.

Ingredients:

For infused gin:

2 cups gin

1 Granny Smith apple

2-4 juniper berries (depending on how strong you want the juniper flavor to be)

1 large spring of rosemary

For cocktail:

2 oz apple and herb-infused gin

2 dashes bay leaf bitters

.75 oz chartreuse

.5 to .75 oz freshly squeezed lime juice (depending on how tart you like it)

In infuse gin, slice green apple and place in clean mason jar. Squeeze juniper berries so they crack a little—this will help the alcohol absorb their flavor more—and place in jar. Pour gin over ingredients and let sit for a week, shaking when you remember to. A day or two before you want to enjoy your cocktail, throw in a sprig of rosemary that has been slightly bruised, again, to help the alcohol better absorb its flavor. I wait a little on the rosemary because the fresh stuff takes less time to be extracted in alcohol and letting it sit too long in the gin muddies the flavor. To use, pour gin through strainer into clean mason jar.

For cocktail, mix gin, chartreuse, lime juice, and dash of bitters in a shaker. Add ice and shake until container is frosty. Serves one—so double or triple the batch and invite your coven over. Pair with a chilly autumn night, a full moon, and a handful of spells. Cauldron optional.