Public - Newsletter

Welcome to our December 2025 Kitchen Witch newsletter.

Here it is! - our last Kitchen Witch newsletter of 2025. Every year seems to go by faster and faster.

We have had another fabulous year here at Kitchen Witch. Our friendship, workmanship, and our community has gone from strength to strength and we are loving every minute of it.

On behalf of Rachel and Heather, I would like to THANK YOU all for your continued support - our community would not be what it is without it. We love that you join us online for our chats and rituals, follow us on our various social media platforms and take a wander into our Emporium to browse and purchase our goodies.

I will do my usual round up of 2025, so look out for that on the Kitchen Witch blog this month.

2026 is looking good for us with our first online retreat in February, and the Spring Equinox will be the date - roughly - for our first ritual of the year. Full details of that to follow in due course. We also have a couple of workshops in the pipeline - the first one is in March and newsletter subscribers (that will be you) are the first to get a sneak peak of it before we let it loose on the general pagan world.

Wishing you all a fantastic Yule/Christmas!

Ness x

Herbarium Oracle Card for December by Ness

This months Oracle card from our new Herbarium deck is Queen Anne's Lace and Creativity. This plant was so named as it is said to resemble the lace making of Queen Anne. Whilst making her lace, she pricked her finger on a needle and a single drop of blood fell in the centre of her work. If you look closely at the centre of the flower, you can spot a very tiny red cluster.

Creativity is the word for this month. Yule brings creativity with gift buying, gift wrapping and the preparation of the food. Along with the decoration of the home and the tree. Bring your creative flair to your home and gift making this month. Try making instead of buying - a homemade gift from the heart is always appreciated.

What's Going on in Nature this Month from Ness  

Winter has arrived! Late November brought the temperatures down sharply and we woke to frost gleaming on the bare trees, the grass, and turned the brown fields to a glittery expanse of white. I love to see clear blue skies and a winter sun on a frosty day - much better than being cold and grey with lots of rain.

There is still some flowering going on in my garden - I have a bud on my rose bush, but it hasn't opened. The Osteospermums are still in flower - opening up to greet the weak warmth of the sun and I also have some lavender heads appear after I pruned them at the end of the summer.

Out in the hedgerows and along the fields are nettles, nipplewort, and the bare trees are showing clumps of mistletoe. I have spotted a clump of snowdrops - poor things must be very confused! Mallow is also making an appearance along the footpath verges along with what appears to be Storksbill according to my trusty app, but I am not completely convinced.

Recipe for December by Heather

 This month has two recipes because I love them both.  Plus, with all the richer foods we indulge ourselves with at this time of the year (I may have started early on the mince pies and chocolates!), these are nourishing, providing flavourful and healthier alternatives.

Vegetable, Bean and Pasta Soup

A substantial dish to comfort, fill and warm, which is also packed with magical correspondences. Serve with some crusty rolls or bread.

Ingredients with their magical correspondences

3 tablespoons oil – fertility, luck, prosperity, protection

1 chopped onion – passion, fertility

4 crushed garlic cloves – protection, healing, strength, courage

1 teaspoon each of oregano (healing, calming) and thyme (healing, vision, love, cleansing)

Cauliflower head - half (if not using broccoli full), cut into florets – emotions, moon magic, protection

Broccoli head – half (if not using cauliflower full), cut into florets – strength, protection

2 carrots, or substitute with peas/green beans – clarity, vision, passion, wisdom, prosperity

2 440g cans of beans, drained (butter, haricot, chickpea or mixed) – wisdom, divination, clarity

2 litres/4 pints vegetable stock

100g/ 3oz pasta – divination, protection, communication, creativity

Salt and pepper

Coriander to garnish - clarity, divination, ancestors, love, lust, fertility, creativity

Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onion on a low heat until soft, about 10 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook for a further 2 – 3 minutes, then add in the herbs, broccoli, cauliflower and carrots, cook these for about 5 minutes.  

Stir in the beans, add the stock and then bring to the boil, allowing the dish to simmer for about 15 minutes before adding the pasta.  Continue to simmer until everything id cooked, season with salt and pepper.

Serve.   Sprinkle with grated parmesan or some diced feta cheese.

Spice Bombs 

With a name like this these cakes are fun and yummy!

Ingredients with their magical correspondences

150g/5 oz golden syrup – love, protection, friendship, relationships

150g/5 oz soft brown sugar – love, protection

150g/5 oz butter (or vegan substitute) – peace, abundance, spirituality

4 eggs (or vegan substitute) – fertility, creativity, transformation, new beginnings, divination

400g/14 oz plain (all purpose) flour – prosperity, abundance, luck, wishes

2 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda – speed, abundance, growth

4 teaspoons ground cinnamon – success, healing, power, protection, love, focus, change

2 teaspoons ground cloves – love, abundance, clarity, protection, communication, truth

200g/7 ox sultanas – happiness, abundance, celebration

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas mark 4.

In a pan over a low heat melt the golden syrup, sugar and butter.   Leave to cool the add the eggs, mixing well between each one.

Stir in the flour, bicarb of soda and the spices, once mixed stir in the sultanas.

Grease a 12 hole muffin case (or use cases), spoon the mix into each one about halfway, you will have enough for two batches.

Bake for about 20 – 25 minutes.   

These scrumptious cakes are lovely eaten warm or once cooled, sliced and topped with jam.

Both recipes are from Practically Pagan: An Alternative Guide to Cooking by Rachel Patterson

Craft for the Month by Heather

Make a Goddess

If you’ve ever had those times when you want to get to know a Goddess, or the images you find don’t match the way She appears to you, then this idea may be useful.  Design your own representation of Her to go on your altar, to use in your journal or to take as part of a travel altar.

You will need

Card or cardboard

Tissue paper, pictures from magazines, ribbons, glitter, material, beads, chains, charms, stickers, paint, crayon’s, pencils, etc. 

Glue

Scissors

You can make this into a ritual, an offering to the Goddess, by preparing the space, lighting candle and incense.  Talk to Her, tell Her what you are planning to make in Her honour.

Choose the shape you want for your figure, I like mine to stand so prefer a flat base (see picture above), you can design your own or they can be found on the internet as a free download.

Cut out your card/cardboard Goddess, then let your inner child free choosing your materials to decorate her!

We’d love to see pictures of your creations posted on the Kitchen Witch Coven & School FB page - https://www.facebook.com/groups/kitchenwitchuk

Online Lithomancy Workshop

Exclusive sneak peak for our Newsletter Subscribers.

Our first online workshop for 2026 will be the Art of Lithomancy.

Join Rachel, Heather and Ness for a two hour session discussing what Lithomancy is and how you can work with it for divination purposes.

This workshop will be interactive so we will be giving you suggestions as to what you can use to put together your own lithomancy set, which will give you the opportunity to discuss what each of the items means to you.