The beautiful sabbat of Beltane is upon us again. A season whose fledgling roots were acknowledged and celebrated back in the chilly days of February, at Imbolc, has since transformed into the radiant bloom that is springtime.
Historically, Beltane has often marked the start of the light half of the year, which is characterized by such things as abundant sunlight, warmth, and a wide variety of fresh crops.
This light-filled half will conclude, from a sabbat standpoint, with Samhain at the end of October, from which point onward the world will experience the darker half of the year. Until, in a dance that has played out since time immemorial, the cycle begins anew once more the following Beltane.
For those north of the equator (south of this point, the seasons – and, optionally, Wheel of the Year – are experienced in reverse order to those in the northern hemisphere), May and June are often a gloriously lovely time.
All of nature has come out of hibernation, the sky rivals tropical seas with the depth of its azure tones, the grass is verdant, lush and inviting to our sandal clad feet, and some of the most delicious fresh food of the entire year is once again in season.
This year, however, while all of those same things still ring true, the Covid-19 pandemic and continued need to remain in self-isolation, coupled with global food chain and supply shortages of certain products means that popping down to the nearest grocery store or farmer’s market for fresh produce may not be possible at present
Even if our local supermarkets are open, there’s no guarantee that the items we’re after will be on their shelves. Nor that we’ll be in a position – be it due to health, finances, or safety – to reach the stores nearest to us in the first place.
I’m a huge proponent of eating fresh, shopping locally, and (if feasible and so desired) growing some of your own food.
Tough times alter our lives, however. The types and availability of food that we presently have available to us is currently one of the ways in which many people are experiencing the impacts of this devastating global pandemic.
In today’s post, we are going to explore some of the foods that are closely associated with Beltane coupled with ways to make the most of those foods in store cupboard form, as that is what an ever-increasing number of us are working with for our daily menus and sabbat meals alike.
What foods are traditionally associated with Beltane?
Beltane is the Celtic May Day festival whose roots stretch far back in history, to a time of a primarily agrarian-based society the predated the industrial revolutions by hundreds upon hundreds of years.
It is one of the four traditional Celtic/Gaelic festivals that helped to delineate the seasons for these early people (the others were Samhain, Imbolc, and Lughnasadh/Lammas, respectively).
Beltane was heavily associated with the start of the summer pastoral season, fresh produce, and energy filled life, plus fiery passion, and was seen to be a time when – much as at Samhain – the veil between the worlds thinned.
The ancient Celts were certainly not the only culture to celebrate, honour and/or worship the start of May, but it is largely through their observance of this annual happening that we’ve derived much of our 21st century interpretation of Beltane. Influences from other early European cultures, including the Norse and the Germanic peoples can be felt as well.
As this springtime sabbat is typically observed on, or right around, May 1st, the foods that have traditionally been associated with Beltane tend to be those that are at are in season at that point in the spring.
These include, but are not limited to, the following:
-Asparagus
-Artichokes
-Baby/new potatoes
-Bannock
-Blueberries
-Carrots
-Celery
-Dairy products (vegetarians, vegans, and those who do not otherwise consume animal milk products can easily swap in dairy alternatives instead)
-Garlic (as well as wild garlic)
-Green beans
-Green peas
-Edible springtime flowers such as honeysuckle, lilacs, jasmine, roses, and violets
*IMPORTANT NOTE* Only Jasminum officinale is edible. All other jasmine species, including “false jasmine” are poisonous. Please see this page on edible flowers for more details.
-Honey
-Leeks
-Lemons
-Lettuce
-May Wine (alcoholic or non-alcoholic versions; here is a lovely May Wine recipe that you may enjoy)
-Oatcakes
-Radishes
-Ramps (a species of wild onions)
-Roses (and rose water)
-Rhubarb (in some areas, in others it may be ready later in the summer)
-Scones
-Spinach
-Spring onions
-Strawberries
-Swiss chard
-Various herbs such as chives, dill, lavender, lemon balm, rosemary, tarragon, and thyme
-Watercress
Importantly, it should be noted that the ancients did not have had access to all of these foods at the same time and in the same place. (Ye olde Whole Foods Market was definitely not a thing yet! 😄)
However, chances are that of those they were able to harvest or otherwise obtain (such as through trading), they would likely have included a variety of these healthy offerings into their diet during the spring and early summer months.
Some of the above listed foods are going to be explored in further detail below, complete with their respective magickal correspondences.
Are fresh foods a better choice for Beltane?
While you might prefer the taste or texture of fresh versions of certain foods, from a magickal standpoint, I do not personally believe that canned, tinned, frozen, dehydrated, or otherwise non-perishable forms of food are automatically less effective, magickal, or meaningful (especially if little to no preservatives or artificial ingredients have been added to them).
You can impart, bless, charge, or otherwise imbue anything that you eat or work with in your practice with the energy and intent of your choosing.
Doing so should help to ensure that foods with far off expiration dates are just as useful and beneficial in your workings (and daily meals) as those that were just plucked from the field or tree.
Objectively, while some foods are seen as being fairly common non-perishable pantry or store cupboard staples, I have no way of knowing what you have on hand and/or may readily have access to at present.
I encourage you to keep in mind as you continue reading from this point onward, that this is not a checklist. It is totally okay if you do not currently have some or even all of these different foods at your house.
Necessity is the mother of invention and of substitution. As lovely as it is to try and eat foods that are traditionally in season – or otherwise plentifully available – at the time of each of the sabbats, if that isn’t feasible for you, please try not to worry about it.
As an alternative, you could aim instead to focus more on the colour of your food. For example, luscious greens and sunny yellows, pretty reds and elegant purples to mirror and correspond to the hues that we see in abundant in the natural world during the month of May.
As well, for the purpose of keeping things concise, I have used the terms “pantry” and “store cupboard” quite liberally here, extending them to cover various foods that you may have in canned, tinned, packaged, frozen or otherwise non-perishable form.
Naturally, if you currently have ready access to the fresh versions of these foods and wish to enjoy them during the Beltane season, by all means do so.
That said, we witchy folk are nothing if not resourceful and know that making the best of what we have at our disposal right now is one of the keys to a happier, more content, and abundantly blessed life and magickal practice alike – so reach for those store cupboard staples!
15 foods for Beltane and their magickal correspondences
1. Asparagus: Magickal properties for asparagus pertain in no small part to lust, sex, power, and fertility – making it one of the most well-suited foods to tuck into at Beltane. In addition, asparagus is linked magickally to cleansing, purifying, healing, water magick, money magick, fortitude, keeping a calm head, standing up for yourself and others, boldness, and masculine energy.
Common non-perishable forms of asparagus include frozen, pickled, and canned/tinned.
2. Artichokes: Magickal properties for artichokes tend to gravitate heavily towards matters of shielding and protection, as well as areas of personal growth, getting to the heart of the matter, letting your inner desires shine or manifest, exposing the truth, boldness, honesty, caring for others, and love of all sorts.
Common non-perishable forms of artichokes include frozen, pickled, and canned/tinned.
3. Blueberries: Magickal properties for blueberries abound – much like the healthy properties of these powerhouse fruits. Turn to blueberry magick for protection (including of pets and other animals, as well as houses and property protection), the moon, feminine energy, health, healing, restoration, aura cleansing and strengthening, divination, faeries, sweetness, vitality, completion (of projects, goals, tasks, etc), shielding and protecting from energy vampires and psychic attacks, and optimism.
Common non-perishable forms of blueberries include frozen, dehydrated, powdered, freeze-dried, syrups, jams, jellies, preserves, and canned/tinned.
4. Carrots: Magickal properties for carrots – by far one of the most iconic and beloved of springtime vegetables – include such things as grounding, healing, protection, desire, sexuality, fertility, seeing things for what they truly are, planting seeds of your desires, positivity and fun, sweetness, healing, opening your third eye, dreams, visions, youthfulness, and playfulness.
Common non-perishable forms of carrots include frozen, dehydrated, freeze-dried, jams, preserved in sweet syrups, relishes, pickled, and canned/tinned.
5. Celery: Magickal properties for celery include those that can help with a number of important areas of our lives, including mental clarity, releasing, banishing, concentration, psychic awareness and gifts, soothing, helping to pass or speed along unwanted situations, serenity, calming, weight related matters, balance and harmony, unearthing the truth, and (much like asparagus) water workings and rituals.
Common non-perishable forms of celery include frozen, dehydrated, celery salt, celery seeds, and canned/tinned.
6. Garlic: Magickal properties for garlic, one of the world’s most frequently used and adored culinary ingredients, are quite abundant and pertain to matters such as protection, luck, distancing yourself from unwanted energies and individuals, health, personal growth, masculinity, strength inclusion in witch jars, spell jars, mojo bags, and poppets; home protection, cleansing, purification, ancestor work, spell breaking, hex and curse breaking, working at the crossroads, and nighttime magick.
Common non-perishable forms of garlic include minced and crushed forms of garlic sold in jars, frozen, freeze dried, garlic salt, garlic powder, garlic paste, pickled, and canned/tinned.
7. Green Beans: Magickal properties for green beans are plentiful – much like the culinary applications for perineal springtime vegetables. Matters of divination, money, creativity, new starts, standing tall (standing up for yourself), insight, wisdom, communication, clarity, personal space, getting out of ruts, hopefulness, creativity, garden and the fae are some of the key areas where green beans can help your magickal spells and other witchy workings. (Note, these magickal properties apply to yellow wax beans as well.)
Common non-perishable forms of green beans include frozen, freeze-dried, pickled, and canned/tinned.
8. Green Peas: Magickal properties for green peas (including sugar snap peas) share points in common with those of green beans, as well as some of their own special strengths. Turn to green pea magick when you want to focus on areas relating to new growth, love, traditions, family matters, ancestor work, history, gardening, environmental protection, Gaia, strength, grounding, acceptance, serenity, and money matters.
Common non-perishable forms of green peas include frozen, freeze-dried, canned/tinned, and green pea snack crisps.
9. Honey: Magickal properties for honey flow as abundantly and beautifully as this ancient, much adored culinary treasure. Work with honey in your spells, rituals, offerings and other magickal activities that pertain to love, happiness, peace, serenity, creativity, femininity, fertility, healing, self care, vital energy, binding, friendships, reaching amicable outcomes, traditions, family, celebrating both life and death (including as an offering at cemeteries, launching new project and businesses, sweetness, kindness, romance, longevity, the sun, in hoodoo honey jars, and as an offering to a wide array of gods, goddesses, and spirit allies.
Most forms of honey, assuming they are properly stored are inherently long-lasting. If needed, honey can be frozen and thawed for later use (or used straight from its frozen form in some types of recipes).
10. Lemons: Magickal properties for lemons are generally upbeat and sunny, reminding one of the vibrant hue of this beloved citrus fruit. Make lemons your magickal main squeeze when you want to focus on spells, rituals, offerings and other witchy workings pertaining to awareness, spirituality, clarity, purification, cleansing, rejuvenation, happiness, compassion, prosperity, warm and friendly relationships, friendship, femininity, fertility, children, auras, lightness of being, dreams, breaking negative ties, optimism, and the moon. (And, my fellow Cancers may enjoy knowing that lemons are closely associated with our astrological sign, much as it is with that of Pisces.)
Common non-perishable forms of lemons include frozen, freeze-dried, dehydrated, preserved, dried lemon peel, lemon extract, lemon juice, lemon concentrate, lemon pepper, jams, marmalades, and candied lemon peel.
11. Oats: Magickal properties for oats stretch far back into the past and oats remain one of the most versatile and useful magickal ingredients you can keep in your kitchen or witchy ingredient cabinet to this day. Use oats in your magickal workings when you’re focusing on areas of happiness, health, tradition, stability, fertility, ancestor work, family matters, fortitude, endurance, persistence, personal change, meditation, house and home, beauty, friendship, faithfulness, good luck, stick-to-itiveness, comfort, healing, respect, spiritual growth, venturing out into the world, education, employment, and achieving balance in your life.
Most varieties of oats, assuming they are properly stored are inherently long-lasting. Some of the most common forms of oats include oatmeal, quick cooking oats, old-fashioned oats, rolled oats, steel-cut oats, oat flour, oatbreads, oatcakes, oat crackers, oat based breakfast cereals, granola, musali, granola bars, British flapjacks, oatmeal cookies, and oat milk.
12. Rosemary: Magickal properties for rosemary abound and this beautiful herb is one that should have a standing spot in both your magickal workings and your kitchen. Use rosemary when you’re focusing on areas pertaining to love, attraction, spicing up your life, the solar plexus, dream work, warding off nightmares, memories, loyalty, sleep, strength, kitchen witchery, home blessings and protection, family, jealousy, bonding, purification, divination, protection from the evil eye, cleaning your space, offerings, the dead, hedge riding, spirits, ancient history, creativity, strengthening relationships, rejuvenation, bathing, and the element of air.
Common non-perishable forms of rosemary include dried, frozen, rosemary paste, rosemary-infused oils, and rosemary salt.
13. Spinach: Magickal properties for spinach are strong and ample (much like the delicious culinary possibilities when cooking with spinach). Tap into the green goodness of spinach when you wish to focus your magickal workings on areas of personal growth, money, fertility, passion, strength, determination, shielding, charging, the forest (and nature in general), travel, transportation, ley lines, astral projection, or the planet Jupiter.
Common non-perishable forms of spinach include frozen, canned/tinned, and dehydrated.
14. Strawberries: Magickal properties for strawberries are generally sweet, upbeat and highly welcome – much like this sunny weather culinary staple. Turn to strawberries in your magickal workings when you’re centering your attention on romance, love, pregnancy, family, youth, beauty, femininity, positivity, hope, truthfulness, creativity, warmth, friendship, overcoming hardships, dedication, success, stamina, reliability, giving, spiritual detoxification and cleansing, good luck, or the goddess Venus.
Common non-perishable forms of strawberries include frozen, dehydrated, freeze-dried, powdered, syrups, jams, jellies, preserves, and canned/tinned.
15. Thyme: Magickal properties for thyme include those pertaining to purifying, cleansing, releasing and banishing negativity, happiness, personal style, prosperity, sweetness, hope, stability, tradition, balance, personal freedom, boldness, positive outlooks, letting go, compassion, reaching peaceful agreements, easing anxiety and nervousness, grief, trauma processing, releasing negativity, the fae, forest spirits, history, ancestors work, finding lost items, house hunting, financial matters, longevity, creativity, performing arts, writing, and honoring the dead.
Common non-perishable forms of thyme include dried, frozen, thyme paste, thyme-infused oils, and thyme salt.
As discussed earlier in this post, it is useful to remember that the magickal properties of each of the above listed foods apply whether a given food is fresh or preserved in some manner.
I aimed to include foods in this list that are, under normal (aka, pre-Coronavirus) circumstances, relatively readily available in many parts of the world in at least one non-perishable form, such as canned, tinned, frozen or dried.
Thus making them more likely to be a store cupboard (or freezer, spice rack, etc) item that you already have in your home or which you may be able to purchase – depending on what the shops or online sources for groceries (and magickal ingredients) in your area still have in stock at the moment.
Ways to work with food at Beltane
If you’re wondering how to work with food at Beltane, you’ve come to the right place!
The following are some lovely and meaningful ways to involve springtime foods in your Beltane celebrations, rituals and magickal workings.
Before hopping into this list, I need to preface it by making an important point. If you – or anyone in your household/family – need every last bite of food at present, please do not sacrifice even so much as a single blueberry or crumb of oatcake for purposes that do not involve human or pet consumption of said food.
It is a wonderful thing to celebrate the sabbats with food-related activities and festive meals, but we are currently living through some exceptionally different and difficult times and survival must always come first.
So with that important point established, let’s continue on and explore a number of different ways to perform Beltane kitchen witchery and otherwise work with food at Beltane in a magickal context.
–Place offerings of food on your altar or in another spot in your house (or yard) for whatever spirit allies, deities, elementals, angels, or other entities you presently work with.
–Hold a dumb supper. While most commonly associated in a modern Pagan sense with Samhain, the act of holding a silent – or “dumb” – supper in order to honour the departed is a poignant act that is inherently at home come Beltane as well.
This is especially true since Beltane and Samhain are exactly opposite each other on the Wheel of the Year and both are liminal times when the veil between the worlds grows thinner. If you’d like to learn more about Dumb Suppers, I suggest checking out this guest post I wrote on the subject back in 2018.
-Whip up some delicious Beltane recipes and have an early morning feast to welcome the rising sun on Beltane morn (or later in the day as a fun and festive May Day brunch.
-Make a batch of beautiful Beltane cupcakes or a charmingly lovely May Pole Cake, both of which honour the centuries old tradition of dancing around a maypole at the start of May.
–Anoint candles with dried or fresh herbs or flower petals (ensure that anything you burn is safe to be inhaled by humans and any animal friends who live with you).
–Mix dried or fresh herbs with salt (white, black, pink, etc – depending on what you’re aiming to accomplish or manifest) and use it to cleanse, bless, protect, or banish unwanted elements or energies from your house, by sprinkling the herbed salt mixture in various areas inside or out of your home (again, make sure any ingredients you use are safe for pets and humans – especially if you live with children).
–Create healthy, all-natural treats for your beloved pets using some of the same store cupboard ingredients that you may be tucking into this Beltane. For example, these 4-Ingredient Dog Treats that star blueberries and whole wheat flour or these inviting looking Carrot and Catnip Kitty Treats.
-Make a loaf of bread, cake, batch of cookies, tray of brownies, or another recipe that includes two or more of the Beltane foods listed in this post for extra seasonal potency.
For example, what about a carrot, thyme and lemon cake? Why not a vegan pot pie with green peas, spinach, leeks and assorted herbs? Or why not a delicious overnight oatmeal loaded with strawberries and blueberries, plus rosemary or lavender, if you have some to hand.
–Connecting all the more with the fae is one of the key elements of Beltane for some folks, myself included. Why not bake classic oatcakes, scones, Fried Honey Cakes, or Elderflower Fritters to leave as an offering for those faeries who inhabit your immediate environment.
-If you have access to pesticide-free edible flowers that are safe for human consumption, consider creating a gorgeous flower-infused honey that celebrates two of spring’s most meaningful (and delicious elements).
This Rose Honey recipe does the trick superbly (and would also make for a wonderful drizzle atop a wide range of Beltane baked goods, from muffins to cakes to berry crisps, crumbles, and buckles).
-If you’re imbibing this Beltane or otherwise utilizing alcohol in your workings, rituals or offerings, consider adding some delectable spring fruits – such as strawberries and blueberries or, if you can get them, early season or frozen peaches – to the wine or your choice for a delectable Beltane sangria.
–Start a book of your favourite sabbat recipes or magickal recipes, including those for Beltane, and add to it each time you hit upon a dish that’s a winner. Alternatively, jot down your sabbat recipes in your grimoire, book of shadows, or another existing book in which you record information pertaining to your path.
Creating our own light during the darkest of times
Beltane is a time to actively embrace, honour and celebrate the sunshine generated light that has returned to our world.
To this end, bonfires have long been a traditional part of many Mayday festivities and rituals. They are not the only way to let the light shine all the more brightly in our lives, however.
Things are not just tough, they’re out and out brutal for the planet as a whole right now.
At Beltane, I encourage you to look for safe, meaningful ways that you transmit energy, positivity and hope out into the world.
Ensure that you focus on your own well being, while also remembering that of others and the countless ways that we are each doing our best to stay afloat, keep our worlds intact as best we can, and remain alive during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In addition to working with seasonal foods and kitchen witchery in general, ask yourself what are some things you could do right now to brighten your days or those of others?
Much as there is a limitless amount of energy in the universe, so too do we have a profound amount of both inner energy and light that resides within ourselves.
This Beltane, tap into and honour that light.
Let it shine, allow it to help you process and cope with the current state that the world is in, and permit it to guide you onward through the remaining months of 2020 that lay beyond May 1st.
With all my might, I wish you a safe, sacred, beautiful, and blessed Beltane. 🌼🌞🌼
Very interesting post. From my first girlfriend Maura I developed an interest in ancient Celtic history and culture. Seeing it through the prism of contemporary life is fascinating. Like you, I prefer fresh food but the pandemic is interfering with all of our plans. Stay healthy and safe, my friend.
Thank you deeply, Ally. I wholeheartedly hope that you and all those you hold dear are able to stay safe and well, too. Thankfully, at present, there are no known cases of the virus in our family – not even amongst Tony’s relatives in Italy, which is an especially huge blessing given what an epicentre that country has been thus far for C-19.
How wonderful that Maura helped to spark an interest in Celtic history + culture in you. Thank you for sharing that fact with me. It’s such a profoundly fascinating topic – especially because, objectively, for everything that we modern folk think we know about this culture and the people that inhabited it, there is no doubt endless things we have little to no clue about (especially since, as far as we know, the ancient Celts themselves didn’t keep written records).
Thank you again. Here’s to hoping that by this time next year – if not far sooner – we’ll be able to usher in May’s return with plenty of fresh food again, my friend.
♥ Autumn
This is such a wonderful post Autumn! I love it! And I completely agree with you, there is no magical difference between fresh and canned/frozen/dehydrated foods. Magic is magic is magic. I absolutely love that you took into consideration that many of us are stuck without fresh foods this Beltane and therefore turning to more nonperishable options. I have to say though, the store down the road is depleted of most canned goods, but full of fresh produce. I ended up buying more fresh produce the last trip to the store than I did previously. At first, I was surprised this was the case, but the more I think about it the more it makes sense. Americans prefer convenience over the work of preparing fresh produce! I’m going to share your article on my FB page. Keep up the excellent work my dear friend!
You are extremely kind, dear Willow. Thank you wholeheartedly for sharing this post on your FB page. I’ve opted thus far not enter into the FB arena with WCL, though may do so at some point. I just mention that to A) let you know this site isn’t yet there and B) thank you tremendously for helping to reach an audience that I don’t presently have direct access to. That is hugely appreciated.
That’s really interesting regarding the relative abundance of fresh food that’s currently available vs the shelves being stripped bare or non-perishables.
Tony and I went out to gather groceries and other necessities for a few weeks (no hoarding – we are adamantly opposed to such – just what we’d realistically need to see us through for that long) on two days prior to going into isolation.
On the first, there was still a fair bit of fresh produce (we’re vegans, so don’t consume animal products, but from what I could see, it was a mixed bag in terms of the availability of fresh meat, dairy, eggs, etc), but on the second shopping day, just four or so days later, that had changed drastically and most of the fresh offerings at two stores (Safeway and a Cnd chain called Superstore) in the nearest somewhat larger town over from ours (we only have one modest-sized local grocery store in our own wee town) were totally gone.
Having not been out since then and not having spoken with many folks who have it’s hard to say what the state of things are now. An aunt who lives in a city of about 90,000 people that’s located 1.5 hours away has said that things there are scare across the board – fresh, frozen, canned, hygiene items, you name it. Knowing this and factoring in the general situation, we’re bracing for much the same when we do have to go out to try and replenish our pantry, fridge and freezer again. Only time will tell though. Hopefully given that BC does have quite a large agricultural industry, there may be some seasonal produce at least that is reaching stores and which we might be able to avail of before it all sells out.
Thank you again big time – very much including for sharing that you also believe that the magickal properties of food pertain regardless of it a given item is fresh, frozen, canned, etc.. It’s awesome to know that I’m not alone there (in my experience over the years, I’ve never felt my spells, offerings, etc were less effective when using non-perishable versions of foods).
Immense hugs & endless wishes for a super safe, positive, peaceful rest of April,
♥ Autumn
So many inspiring and exciting suggestions, Autumn!! We are growing our own vegetables presently and as I sit here watching the sky turn a beautiful orange in the 6am light I’m thinking of all the ways that I can connect and grow the positivity and connection through my intentions in cooking at this time of lockdown!!
Thank you so much for sharing your extensive knowledge and know that it has touched at least one person here today!!
Donna 🧚🏻♀️❤️🐝
https://donnadoesdresses.com
Radiantly lovely Donna, you touched my own heart with your wonderfully kind and supportive comment. Thank you so much. 🙏
What a fantastic blessing that you’re able to grow some of your own food. I would venture to guess that must help give you guys some much-needed peace of mind during these tremendously uncertain times.
I adore that you’re thinking about ways to inject positivity, intention and other poignant meanings into the foods you’ll be making with your homegrown country. As someone who can scarcely draw water from the tap without turning it into an act of kitchen witchery, reading resonated with me a great deal.
Mau your harvest be immensely bountiful, your days safer than Fort Knox, and serenity + wellness yours around the clock, my dear friend.
♥ Autumn
I shop locally and buy whatever’s in season – fortunately, there has been lots of carrots, celery, radishes and an abundance of asparagus lately! It’s been relatively inexpensive too. I’ve been cooking soups (chicken jalapeno corn chowder) and chili (loaded with veggies and spices), and really enjoying how wonderful my home smells. We had some strawberries last night, and it was an awakening of the taste buds.
Happy Beltane, Autumn!
Thank you very much, lovely Shelia. I hope that you guys have a wonderfully sunny, beautiful and blessed start of May as well.
It’s fantastic that you’re finding not only fresh produce, but budget-friendly prices on it to boot. That’s absolutely awesome! 🙌
I’m remaining optimistic that as the sunny season progresses, more and more local produce (both in terms of that grown here in the Okangan and from BC at large) will hit local grocery store shelves and there will be a greater abundance of it again around these parts.
On the last grocery shopping trip we made, some five weeks ago now, the produce sections were almost stripped bare at the Superstore and (especially at the) Safeway in Vernon. We’d already been seeing that in the freezer section, TP and paper towel ailse, and with some canned goods in the days prior to that point, but that was the first time the produce was nearly all gone, too.
It will be really interesting to see, when we do have to go out again (a point that isn’t too far off in all likelihood) what the situation will be like.
Many thanks again. Wishing you a super safe, positive week and continued good fortune on the fresh food finding front.
♥ Autumn
I have to agree with Willow’s comment above – I’m finding absolute zero choices in the canned goods and frozen aisles, but there’s so much fresh produce available!
I’m very much returning to how I used to cook when the kids were little and we were broke all the time and that’s a really good thing! It’s so easy to get complacent about our food – going out to eat too often, wasting food because we didn’t get around to using it before it went bad, etc. – basically, boiling down to complete laziness on my part. I’m back to planning meals and recipes so grocery shopping is only done twice a month and nothing gets wasted, baking bread, no buying of unhealthy treats. I am actually losing weight and my arthritic knees are thanking me for that. lol
Amazingly, I have practically all the things you listed above for Beltane either in my pantry, in the fridge or in the freezer. And speaking of pantries – I totally want mine to look like the one your pictures! A very blessed Beltane to you and Tony, Autumn! 🖤 🖤 🖤
Thank you so much, sweet Lynne. I really appreciate your beautiful Beltane wishes as well as that you shared how things are presently going for you on the food front.
It’s excellent that you’re continuing to be able to find a fair number of fresh foods in your area. The last time Tony and went grocery shopping (which was the last day either of us left our property) was about five weeks ago now and at that time, things were rather slim pickings on the majority of food fronts, fresh included. It was downright shocking, even in the midst of everyone stocking up to various degrees, to see just how incredibly empty (and I truly mean empty) the produce sections at Superstore and (especially) Safeway in Vernon were that day.
We were shopping with an eye to non-perishables, so this wasn’t a giant issue at the time, but I’m not thinking that if even fewer non-perishable options exist these days, we may have no choice but to shop for a larger volume of fresh items on a slightly more frequent basis.
That is flat out awesome regarding the positives that you’re experiencing from how you’re presently eating, including a noticeable degree of improvement with your arthritis. I’m incredibly happy for you and sincerely hope that these benefits multiple with each passing day.
Thank you again, my dear friend. May you have an abundantly blessed, serene, healthy, happy, and sunny Beltane as well.
♥ Autumn
As my husband is retired, he’s been responsible for most of the shopping for years and – apart from the usual essentials – he was in the habit of shopping several times a week, often frequenting different shops for different foodstuffs and ingredients. With the pandemic, he now does one supermarket shop a week and often making do with alternatives when something’s not on the shelves. We do supplement this with shopping at our local organic shop, especially for fruit and veg. Ideally – read: if we had a larger garden – we’d grow things ourselves, like both my grandfathers did. Now we only grow white currents and gooseberries, although we sometimes plant loose leaf salad plugs. Since I am at home more often, we make a lot of soups, which make for a nourishing lunch. Plus, we eat more fruit, which almost always includes blueberries. I think we’re all changing our habits a bit these days. If this includes a healthier, and more natural lifestyle, then at least this is something positive to emerge from it all. Wishing you Happy Belthane, Autumn! xxx
Thank you so much, wonderfully lovely Ann. Your Beltane wishes are deeply appreciated, as is your account of what the state of grocery shopping is presently looking like for you guys.
It’s terrific that you have a small garden of your own (yum-yum!). Lettuce picked from one’s garden almost always tastes so much more delicious than the store-bought variety. I have many happy memories of scrumptious salads comprised of ingredients from my grandparent’s garden when I was growing up.
We do not have a garden or any fruit-bearing trees on our property (save for a few wild grapes that pop up come the early days of fall). We’ve lived in this house for just over two years now and I’ve done some wild foraging in previous summers + early falls around the wilder parts of our neighbourhood (much as I’ve done at previous homes), but unless things improve drastically regarding the pandemic situation, I don’t foresee that being an option this year, unfortunately.
I’ll miss it a good deal (especially the abundance of wild apples and various berries), but refuse to take any undue risks as an autoimmune compromised individual. Hopefully, in future years, we can go foraging again. Thinking about that brings happiness to my heart – especially since it presumably means that things will have improved drastically for the world at large in terms of isolation no longer being necessary. And that is infinitely more important than if we forage or not.
You’re absolutely right about positives/silver linings that can come about from these challenging times for some people. Hopefully in various areas of our lives, hidden blessings like this will emerge for a good deal of us the work over.
Many thanks again, my dear friend. May you have a sunny, enjoyable, super safe Beltane season as well.
♥ Autumn
Such a beautiful post. Autumn. And I’d never thought about jasmine being edible! That’s great to know since we have a bit of it here in our yard.
So many delicious foods are associated with Beltane.
This is indeed a lovely time of year as the herbs and roses look their best- before Summer’s heat overtakes them.
Thank you for including recipes and such great information!!
Debi
Thank you so much, lovely Debi. I really appreciate your wonderful comment and must say right off the bat that I’m very glad you touched on jasmine.
Thank you for doing so. I’m going to update my post accordingly right now to clarify that not all jasmine is safe for humans.
It’s easy to think of jasmine as being edible given its widespread usage in tea, but only the species Jasminum officinale is considered sae. Other species are poisonous – so please, please, please only dig into a dish with jasmine if you know for certain that you’re eating Jasminum officinale. (Or do what I love to do, use jasmine tea to flavour dishes with the sublime scent and pleasing taste of delicate jasmine blossoms.)
So true about the fresh-faced beauty, so to speak, of gardens at this time of the year. I just adore seeing what springs to life in our area as the sunny days return.
Thank you again. You are such a sweet, fantastic person and I’m honoured that you visit my blog.
Big hugs,
♥ Autumn
What a wonderful, informative article. Thank you so much for sharing this information!
I use essential oils and was happy to learn I have some of items in your list: rosemary, thyme, lemon, lavender. A blend of certain oils help with my asthma but I guess it can be an offering as well as assisting me, too.
Sending you and Tony hugs and blessings of healing light.
Tambra
Thank you deeply, dear Tambra. Your blessings and radiant light are received, felt, and sent out in turn to you as well.
Excellent point regarding using essential oils either in conjunction with the foods they’re derived from or as stand-alone products.
That is a creative, fantastic way to avail of certain springtime fruits and herbs (and maybe even the occasional vegetable; carrot seed, for example) that aren’t easy to track down right. I really appreciate you bringing this topic up here. Thank you so much!
May you have an immensely safe, positive, and joy-filled Beltane season.
♥ Autumn
Thanks so much for these tips!
Hi lovely Kathleen, you’re very welcome. It is my heartfelt pleasure.
How are you doing on all fronts during these extremely challenging and uncertain times?
With all my heart, I hope that you have an incredibly safe, healthy, peaceful and blessed Beltane season (and whole of the year).
Many hugs,
♥ Autumn
I can’t wait to celebrate more, I know it’s a little difficult with me still living at home and with covid. I hope I’ll be able to celebrate to the full extent with other people when I go away to college in two years.
Hi Angelina, thank you very much for your lovely blog comments this week. I sincerely appreciate you visiting Witchcrafted Life and sharing some of your thoughts and personal experiences here with me/us.
It can certainly be challenging – but, thankfully, not necessarily impossible – to celebrate the sabbats if you are not presently living in a setting where you’re out of the proverbial broom closet and/or if other circumstances make doing so challenging.
If it’s safe, and otherwise feasible, for you to spend time outdoors, that can open up a vast array of ways to honour and celebrate the seasons. From watching the sun rise or set to creating outdoor altars, leaving offerings from the genius loci in your area to wildcrafting for found natural treasures that can ethically be sourced from around your area (you may wish to leave an offering of thanks in this instance, too, if doing so).
At home, candles (perhaps anointed with meaningful essential oils and/or herbs) in colours and/or scents that pertain to the sabbats, kitchen witchery, discretely placed sigils, various forms of divination, private journaling or BOS/grimoire writing, bath and shower magick/rituals, and displaying seasonal decor are just a few of the many ways one can connect with the sabbats without (in theory) drawing much attention or eliciting potentially unwanted curiosity from others.
However you celebrate the year’s sabbats, I hope that they are each meaningful, serene, empowering, joyful, and blessed occasions for you.💗
Happiest Ostara season wishes from my heart to yours!
♥ Autumn