Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Wicca in the Kitchen (21 page)

Chapter Twenty-Three

Health & Healing

T
hese two subjects are intimately linked. If we're successful in maintaining good health, healing won't be necessary. During a period of illness, we naturally wish to regain a state of good health. Thus, the goal common to both of these subjects is health itself.

Nutritionists have always recognized the importance of a balanced diet in maintaining good health. Many MDs don't accept this, but they're in the business of restoring health, not preserving it. Medical doctors have little training in the role that nutrition can play in creating bodily health.

There are many nonoccult methods of achieving this state. Eat four or five small meals per day, not two or three large ones. Never skip breakfast. Eat more vegetables, grains, and fruits than meat. Cut your intake of fat, sodium, and white sugar. Increase the “fiber” (roughage) in your diet by eating less processed food and more whole grains, fresh vegetables, and fruits. Regularly exercise for at least twenty minutes a day.

Many guidelines to maintaining health have been published. Check the library or your local bookstore for recent, authenticated books. Avoid all fad diets.

Because this is a book of magic, you'll find no more nutritional information in this chapter. I'll be suggesting foods, however, that you can add to your diet to regain or to maintain good health. Such foods must be part of a balanced, sensible diet or they won't be effective.

At the risk of being repetitive—see your doctor before starting one of those “miraculous healing” diets.

Healing

No doctor, herbalist, psychic, magician, or Witch can heal you. There are no miraculous cures that others can perform on your body, mind, or emotions. No spells or rituals can create instant health.

Still . . . doctors, massage therapists, chiropractors, herbalists, psychics, magicians, and even Witches can boost the body's healing process. They can help you to overcome disease and negative conditions. This is accomplished by sending energy to you by one of two methods:

—through prayer, laying-on of the hands, massage therapy, and simple magic (the projection of healing energy into our bodies).

—through the administration of energies in physical form such as herbs, tinctures, teas, Bach flower remedies, essential oils (through aromatherapy), as well as certain prescribed medicines.

If you're sick, consult a qualified, experienced health practitioner of your choice and follow her or his instructions. Eat some of the foods in this chapter, visualizing health as you prepare and consume them; eat nothing that would interfere with the advice of your health practitioner.

Spices and Herbs

Allspice

Garlic (
not
garlic salt)

Peppermint

Sage

Charge before adding to health-giving foods. Use garlic in place of salt for seasoning dishes.

Vegetables

Cucumber

Olive

Pumpkin

Sprouts

Tomato

Eat fresh with visualization.

Fruits

Apple

Lemon

Peach

Pineapple

Watermelon

Other Health Foods

Foods to Avoid

Canned foods

Deep-fried foods

Fast food

Fatty foods

Processed foods

Preserved foods

Salt

Sugar

Very heavy desserts of all kinds

Preparing and Cooking Health Foods

Just before cooking or preparing foods, place a pinch of dried, ground sage into a spoon. Using a potholder if necessary, hold the bowl of the spoon over one of the stove's gas jets or a candle flame until the herb smoulders and releases its healing scent.

Burn a blue or purple candle while cooking, visualizing health (or healing).

Bake a loaf of whole-grain bread. Just before you put the bread into the oven for baking, use a sharp knife to cut an equal-armed cross on the top of the loaf. Bake and eat.

Such dishes as these are most appropriate:

—a salad of cucumbers, tomatoes, and sprouts with a dressing of olive oil and apple cider vinegar mixed with powdered rosemary and sage.

—an apple pie sweetened with concentrated (frozen) apple juice and cinnamon—no sugar.

—unsweetened applesauce (make at home or buy unsweetened).

—small amounts of marzipan, fashioned into equal-armed crosses.

Recipes

Healing Apple Crisp

2 cups apples, peeled and sliced

1 teaspoon lemon juice (freshly squeezed)

1
⁄
2
cup honey

1
⁄
2
to
3
⁄
4
cup graham crackers, crumbled

2 tablespoons butter, melted.

Preheat oven to 375°F (
190°C).

Visualize yourself in glowing, radiant health as you peel and slice the apples, squeeze the juice, and crush the graham crackers.

Turn prepared apples into a 9 x 9 baking dish. Mix the lemon juice into the honey and pour over the apples. (If the apples are very tart, use slightly less lemon juice and slightly more honey.) Combine the crumbled graham crackers with the butter and sprinkle over the apples. Bake at 375°F (190°C) for 30 to 40 minutes (until the apples are tender). Serve topped with cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Serves four.

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Chapter Twenty-Four

Money

F
ew of us couldn't use more money. No matter how much we make, it never seems to be enough. When embarking on a money diet, keep in mind that your attitude toward money is just as important as is the substance itself. Here are some tips:

Visualize yourself as a prosperous person
.
Retrain your thinking. Kill all thoughts of the “Gosh, I'm so broke!” variety. Concentrate on the feeling of having more money.

Budget each paycheck.
Determine where your money is going every month. Spend wisely.

Know that, though money may solve some problems, it is no panacea.
Some of the problems that we have without money will still be around when we have money.

Most of us don't want money; we want what money can buy.

Be prepared to work for money,
even if just by putting personal power into your ritual.

Set realistic goals.
A week-long money food plan won't make you suddenly find thousands of extra dollars in your bank account. Money diets are also virtually worthless for trying to win at lotteries, lotto, bingo, and gambling—simply because there are so many others trying to win, relying on all kinds of magic.

Wealth is a relative state of mind.
A person making 30,000 dollars a year seems astonishingly wealthy to someone making 20,000 dollars, while an unemployed person may look with jealous eyes at the 20,000-dollars-a-year worker.

Accept money into your life.
Know that you are a prosperous person deserving of extra income. Don't wish for it to happen;
allow
it to happen.

Give something back.
When you notice a permanent or temporary increase of money, donate a percentage to charitable causes such as environmental protection groups, animal rights organizations, food banks, battered women's shelters, hospices, and other worthy groups. Give something back or you might not get any more.

As you eat the foods listed below, feel the money energy vibrating within them. Cook and eat with visualization!

Herbs and Spices

Add to any foods, particularly money-attracting dishes.

Vegetables

Fruits

Blackberry cobbler; fig newtons; banana bread; grape juice; strawberry tarts: all are money-attracting foods.

Grains

Rice with cinnamon is an excellent money attractant.

Nuts

Desserts

Other Money Foods

Blackberry brandy

Chocolate milk

Crème de cacao

Maple syrup

Milk

Oat bran muffins

Peanut butter and grape jelly sandwiches on oat bread

Rich desserts

Salt (in moderation)

Tea

Preparing and Cooking Money Foods

Burn a green candle in the kitchen. Cut vegetables into square shapes (to represent the element of earth). Use square pans to bake pies.

Heavy, rich, and sweet foods are ideal for money diets, but don't ignore nuts and vegetables, and never load up on ice cream and other desserts in place of more healthy fare. You will suffer physically from such an unbalanced diet!

Keep your pantry well stocked with foods of all kinds. In the past, as today, food was a sign of wealth. Keep some on hand at all times.

—Add bran to foods

—Have a snack of mixed cashews, almonds, and pecans

—Use only whole-grain breads (no white breads!)

Recipes

Money Trifle

(The amount of ingredients is determined by the size of the bowl used. This recipe is designed for a medium-sized mixing bowl, and will serve 5 to 6. If using a smaller or larger bowl, simply adjust the amounts accordingly.)

1 cup chopped bananas, fresh blackberries, chopped pineapple (sprinkled with salt), or thinly sliced pears

1 teaspoon lemon juice (optional; see below)

4 cups sponge cake (cut into
1
⁄
2
-inch squares)

1
⁄
8
cup sherry

1 cup prepared custard (recipe
page 248
) or banana pudding

1 cup whipped cream (freshly made)

Prepare fruit with visualization. See it bursting with money energy. (If using bananas, sprinkle lemon juice over them to prevent darkening.)

Place half of the cubed sponge cake into the bottom of a 1-to1
1
⁄
2
-quart bowl or soufflé dish. Sprinkle half of the sherry over the cake. Place all of the fruit over the cake. Place the remaining cake cubes on top of the fruit and sprinkle the remaining sherry over them.

Spread the custard or pudding over the cake. Finally, top with the whipped cream. Garnish with additional fresh fruits, if desired. (Lay blackberries or thin slices of banana into the shape of a pentagram on top of the whipped cream.)

Cover. Refrigerate overnight or for at least 6 hours.

Custard

2 eggs

1 egg yolk

1
3
⁄
4
cups light cream

1
⁄
4
cup granulated sugar

Beat eggs and yolk in a saucepan. Stir in cream and granulated sugar. Cook and stir until custard coats a metal spoon. Remove from heat; immediately place pan into a bowl of ice water. Cool, stirring occasionally. Spread half on to cake, store the rest in the refrigerator.

Note:
This dessert is very heavy and luxurious. Eat small amounts,
and visualize during every part of its preparation!

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Chapter Twenty-Five

Sex

T
his is the one type of food magic that is well known to the public—aphrodisiac foods! When eaten, these mystical, magical wonders are supposed to turn the most civilized of us into frothing, arousing animals.

As far back as the first civilizations, humans have used food to spark their sex lives. Both delicious and (to us) revolting foods of all kinds have been eaten with this hope. Some foods popularly thought to stimulate sexual desire are oysters, caviar, and champagne—perhaps the most famous of such foods. Some swear by celery soup; others use herbs such as saw palmetto and damiana. In Asia, the prosaic ginseng root, as well as more profound ingredients such as rhinoceros horns, are considered aphrodisiacs.
*****

The love potions of the past weren't designed to turn a person's head—they were used to heat the loins. Many of these foods are still used for this purpose—with the attendant dangers of infringing on the free will of others.

All of the foods mentioned in this chapter, if prepared and eaten with visualization, can create or increase sexual desire. Serving them to unsuspecting friends simply to get into bed with them would be an exercise in futility, for the diner must be prepared to accept the energies before they'll have any effect.

Instead, eat these foods to increase
your own
sexual appetite. This is especially beneficial if you're involved in a relationship that has lost some of its fire. Serve them to your loved one if you must, but only with the honest statement of the food's legendary ablities (visualizations shouldn't, um, be any problem here).

If you're experiencing difficulties engaging in or enjoying sexual contact, see a qualified professional. Foods have only so much power. They can be of help in overcoming some problems, but serious problems should be treated by a psychologist, a sex therapist, a gynecologist, or some other specialist.

Herbs and Spices

Add small amounts to food. Touch with your index finger and visualize before using.

Vegetables

Lightly cook, stir-fry, or steam these vegetables. Serve hot or warm for the best results. In this one particular diet, it's better not to eat these foods raw.

Fruits

Blackberry

Fig

Mango

To gain the most potency from these fruits, warm them.

Nuts and Grains

Barley

Sesame

Rice

Beverages

Apricot brandy

Chartreuse

Cognac

Plum wine

Rum

A small quantity (one glass) of any alcoholic beverage acts as an aphrodisiac. Too much kills the desire and, in men, can actually prevent the ability to engage in sex.

Other Sex Foods

Especially for Women

Fig

Oyster

Mango

These foods are traditionally thought to have more potent effects on women.

Especially for Men

These foods are traditionally thought to have a more potent effect on men.

Burn a red candle in the kitchen while cooking and preparing sex foods. Cook and prepare with the proper visualization. Cut foods into round and oblong pieces.

—rice with sugar and cinnamon

—stir-fried foods

Recipes

Sex Coffee

1
⁄
2
cup cold water

1 teaspoon decorticated (shelled) cardamom seeds

1
1
⁄
2
cups hot, freshly brewed, double-strength coffee

While touching the cardamom seeds, strongly visualize your need. Place the cold water and the cardamom seeds in a sauce pan. Bring to a full boil; boil for 2 minutes. Strain liquid through a coffee filter. Pour into fresh, hot coffee, and stir. This recipe serves 2 small portions, so share it with a friend.

Note:
Recent research seems to indicate that the consumption of coffee increases our interest in sex.

Mango Upside-Down Sex Cake

2 cups ripe mangos, sliced

2 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon butter

1
⁄
3
cup brown sugar

1
⁄
4
cup shortening

3
⁄
4
cup sugar

1 egg

1
⁄
2
cup milk

1
1
⁄
2
cups flour

2 teaspoon baking powder

1
⁄
4
tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 375°F (
190°C)
.

As you slice the mangos, visualize yourself enjoying sexual activity. Place the sliced mangos in a bowl; pour lemon juice over them, toss and let stand for 15 minutes. Melt the butter in an 8-inch pan or casserole. Add the brown sugar; cover with a layer of the mango slices. In a bowl, cream together the shortening and sugar. Add the beaten egg. Sifting the dry ingredients, add alternately with the milk. Pour the batter over the mangos. Bake at 375°F (190°C) for 50 to 60 minutes or until done. Let cool slightly, and then invert the pan over a plate.

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