Making Chthonic Cakes for the Dead: What NOT to do

[Mythopoeia]

Cthonic Cakes for the Dead

Summer is coming to a close, Samhain is creeping up, let’s make cakes for the dead.

The recipe is from The Witching Herbs by Harold Roth

• Honey
• Myrrh
• Poppy Seeds
• Red Wine

I botched these the first time I made them back in 2020, and know of at least one other person who made the same mistake. Learn from our suffering.

I chose to use tiny skull molds, but that’s not necessary (or part of the original recipe).

First I boiled the honey, myrrh, and poppy seeds. I didn’t have any red wine so I left it out.

I pressed the mixture into the molds and left them to dry.

What did I do wrong? Not nearly enough myrrh. No, the honey won’t “harden and make it all ok”. Be very liberal with the myrhh!

[Veil]

@Mythopoeia

Summer is coming to a close, Samhain is creeping up, let’s make cakes for the dead.

[cries in Southern hemisphere]

[Mythopoeia]

Oh good point, that was pretty eurocentric. My bad!

Let’s just make cakes for the dead for fun

[Veil]

Haha, sold. If you have recipes for Beltane (?) cakes let me know.

[Arianna]

Me too!

[Mythopoeia]

@Veil , @Arianna , I just came across a recipe for Beltane oat cakes in Fire Magic: Elements of Magic III by Josephine Winter.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 cup oatmeal
• Warm water

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 180C / 350F
2. Rub the butter into the sugar
3. Sift in the flour, baking soda, and cream of tartar
4. Add enough warm water to mix everything into a stiff dough
5. Roll out thinly and cut into desired shapes
6. Bake 10-15 minutes (unitl golden brown)

[Mythopoeia]

@Mythopoeia

Fire Magic: Elements of Magic III by Josephine Winter.

The book itself is unfortunately largely a list of correspondences, is very wicca-geared, and is very much for absolute beginners. The author is an Aussie though, so it might provide some insight for herbalism “down under”.

[Arianna]

Gonna bookmark!