Tea & Witchery

Beth - she/her Eclectic practitioner -->growing things -->baking things -->scattered disaster Please check with your doctor regarding personal herbal medicine use. Be safe.

[elminx]

Lemon Lavender Cupcakes For Calm in Troubled Times

This is hands down one of the best things I have ever made, and if you are afraid of baking, don't be. I have never been a particularly proficient baker. Even before I learned I had to go gluten-free, and without gluten to do the work for me, it has been a rough go, baking-wise. So if I can make this recipe, you can make this recipe.

This recipe combines two of my most trusted allies: lemon and lavender. I enchanted the lemon cupcakes for general cleansing and the lavender buttercream for calm, because this is what most of us need to help us navigate 2025.

It's a shit show; I made cupcakes. These were part of my May Day Dinner - you can check out that post for other fun culinary spring projects.

A note on ingredients: good ripe fresh lemon and culinary lavender are a must for this recipe. They are the two standout ingredients, so we want them to be their best. Any white/yellow/vanilla cake mix will work here, or if you're more adventurous than I, you can make the whole cake yourself. I used Betty Crocker brand gluten-free Yellow Cake Mix, because that's what my local store had on hand. On the other hand, I used an unwaxed organic lemon and culinary lavender I bought at the Cape Cod Lavender Farm last summer.

As written, these are recipes. I expect you to bring your magic to these to make them your own.

Lemon Cupcakes

1 box yellow cake mix (vanilla would work too) Zest of 1 Lemon 3 tbs. lemon juice

I followed the exact instructions on the back of my cake mix and added lemon zest and juice when the wet liquids were added, but I made no other changes to the recipe. As I said, I'm not an expert baker. They came out very well.

This particular cupcake reminds me of Audrey from Little Shop of Horrors, which is a sign that spirit is present in my household.

Lavender Buttercream Frosting

1/4 Cup milk 1 tbs. lavender 3 cups powdered sugar 2 sticks of unsalted butter at room temperature 1 tbs vanilla Salt, to taste Purple food coloring, optional Purple edible glitter, optional

I infused the lavender in warm (not boiling) milk for 15 minutes, then strained it out before adding all the ingredients to my Kitchen Aid. I then ran it on low with the paddle attachment until it was frosting. I added three drops each of red and blue food coloring to get a light purple effect. (I'm sure it can be done with a hand mixer; the Kitchen Aid just makes it much easier.)

The temperature of the butter was key here. The frosting will be very temperature dependent; store it in the fridge, but if you want to pipe it, it must be at room temperature.

I don't have piping equipment, so I made a makeshift one out of a Ziploc bag with a hole cut in the corner.

The end result is a strong lemon cupcake with a lovely, subtle lavender frosting; this isn't overpowering or "soapy" at all.

I will definitely make these again.

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[tarot-dreams]

Seven of Wands. Judgement. Ace of Wands.

From underneath a shroud of regret and strife, you are plagued by the memories of days gone by. Clear your mind of all doubt and uncertainty. Remain focused on the present. Know that to fight the winds of change is a losing battle, so embrace that which is to come. Cut the ties of oppression. Within the light of a new day, find your strength.

[tea-in-the-wild]

I’ve started doing readings using all three of my tarot decks simultaneously and there’s nothing quite like all three of them pulling the same card for the same question.

[tea-in-the-wild]

Father in law: You should put your loose tooth under your pillow for the tooth fairy.

6yo kid: My mommy said we don't summon entities we're unfamiliar with.

[sacredspiral]

blessing my plants before our first snow - expected to fall this afternoon - with resilience, abundance, and a spirit of growth as we head towards colder times and darker days. thanked them with some nourishing compost mix from our lil backyard pile :’)

[tea-in-the-wild]

I may be betraying my username by saying this, but I just got a new french press and it has made everything about my morning routine better. 

[bambuita]

There is lots of stuff growing just not ripen 😍

👩🏼‍🌾

[tea-in-the-wild]

I cleaned and rearranged my desk/snake setup/bookshelves and found the tarot deck I had been missing. It was just waiting for me to get my shit together, apparently. Touché, deck. Touché . 

[thats-howthelightgets-in]

Actually useful shit to have as a witch

You really don't need all the fancy bullshit every tumblr influencer will ever tell you to use. Here's my countdown ofaxtually useful shit.

A pocket knife, preferably with a wood handle. Use that bitch for everything, enchant it, carve symbols in it. It will absolutely be your best friend.

A good bag or backpack with a couple of plastic or ziploc bags in it. If you ever run off into the woods to find minerals, bones, plants, etc. A set aside bag and some things to store your treasures in becomes a necessity.

Basic divinatory sets. You don't have to buy fancy shit, learn to divine with playing cards and dice, or learn geomancy, lithomancy, or rune casting with homemade sets. A tarot deck is nice, but it isn't necessary when you've got so many other divinatory aids available.

A nice sized chunk of scrap cloth. When you process dried plants or sort new ones, that shit can and will get everywhere. A scrap piece of muslin or linen can help contain all of that mess and make clean up way easier.

A stash of good rocks. Draw sigils or symbols on those babies and leave them in the garden, the windowsill,property boundaries, under the stoop, etc. You can never have too many good rocks.

A pendulum, for fucks sake. The cards are going to be vague as hell when you're trying to figure out yes or no questions, and using a candle to communicate with spirits is really fucking hard outside. If you can't afford one, find a nice chunk of pointy quartz and learn to macrame.

A workspace. Everyone talks about having big fancy altars, but no one mentions that you need a good surface to do all your work on.

Storage, so much storage. I'm not talking about mason jars and pill bottles, I'm talking about where you put all the things you put in those jars. Having a workspace with drawers is immeasurably helpful.

A broom and water source. You're going to be cleaning up after yourself a lot, it's helpful to have a jug of water and a broom that stays by your workspace.

A mode of cleansing. I make a salt concoction to scatter around my workspace on short notice and store it close by.

On that note: SOMETHING TO CANCEL SPELLS WITH. Eventually, something will go wrong. You'll want to end that spell immediately. Have something to do it with.

A strainer. If you don't have a blender, rub dried plants across it to get a powder. If you do have a blender, you can strain that powder with it. Either way, if you intend to powder shit, get a strainer.

Small trays. It makes drying flowers so much easier if you have a small metal surface to contain them with- then just stick those suckers in a southern window and let em go.

Yarn/string scraps. Having a box or drawer of scraps makes trying this up to dry easier and a bit less wasteful.

A stash of offerings for whatever you work with. Honey for fae, coins for graveyard gatekeepers, alcohol for ancestors, etc.

Protective talismans or charms. Once you're into all of this stuff, you'll likely stick your nose in something you shouldn't. Having basic protection with you or in your workspace is incredibly important. A key and hagstone with red string is simple and effective.

A lighter- so many people forget the most basic shit. You're going to want to light shit on fire if you're a witch.

And a last tip- if something is too hard for a mortar and pestle, a plastic bag and hammer works too.

[hungrybookwyrm]

Flowers from the market mixed with wildflowers I found on the way home

[freckledfortuneteller]

Reblog if you're a witch

I need to follow more witchy blogs! So if you have one reblog this so I can see and connect with my fellow witches.

[mrs-k-cottage-witch]

Spring Witchy Recipes

Here are some recipes I have made or have been trying out for spring!

Three Flower Sugar -

1 oz lavender

1 dried rose, just the petals

1 oz dried chamomile or honeysuckle

Grind in a mortal and pestle, add ½ cup of sugar and grind until powder fine. Store in pink jar for love spells, self care spells, and to amplify the properties of the flowers.

Uses: Sprinkle on sugar cookies for Beltane rituals, stir into an herbal tea, sprinkle over offerings for the fae, use in a self care spell jar, use in spells to sweeten relationships or communication, etc.

Floral Tincture -

Great for making drinks, baking, or use in potions for Spring celebrations.

equal parts dried lavender, honeysuckle, chamomile, elder flowers, roses etc (I used chamomile, elder flowers, and honeysuckle.)

1 jar (dark jar if possible)

 just enough vodka or other 180 proof alcohol to just cover the flowers, maybe ½ in over the dried materials

Place flowers into jar, cover with alcohol and shake vigorously.

Store in a dark cool place.

Shake periodically

let steep for 4 weeks or more

Strain through a fine mesh strainer/coffee filter or muslin cloth, squeeze excess out of the flowers.

Strain through coffee filter or muslin cloth once more and bottle in a glass bottle/jar. 

 Uses: Use in cooking recipes like you would vanilla extract or other baking flavorings, use an eye dropper to drop into sparkling water/tea for a refreshing drink, use like bitters in a martini recipe, use for potions or spells, etc.

Lavender Meyer Lemon Mint Tea -

From the book “infuse” 

8 sprigs of fresh mint

4 sprigs dried lavender

4 Meyer lemon peels

30 oz of water

Combine all ingredients in a pitcher in the refrigerator over night (for at least 10 hours). A relaxing and refreshing drink for  all spring celebrations. :) Also can be used for cleansing and purifying properties to boost your Spring Cleaning, from the inside out. 

[tea-in-the-wild]

The unending struggle between my desire to do things in a way that fits with my aesthetic imagining and the desire to just, y’know, get things done.

[expansivepursuit]

[tea-in-the-wild]

Let's Talk Herbs: Yarrow

Let’s Talk Herbs: Yarrow

Time to talk about one of my all-time favorites: yarrow.

Yarrow grows like crazy where I live in Montana. I find it wild constantly and my R, my fiance, side-eyed me a little when he found out I was going to dedicate garden space to it. Honestly, as much as I love foraging for herbs, sometimes having your own stock is just easier. You know exactly what has and has not been sprayed on it, for…

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[archae-heart-deactivated2021012]

hi!! i saw some baking you did and i wanted to ask, did you actually bake flowers into the cakes? it looked really cool and i kinda want to try it :)

Sometimes I bake them into the cake and sometimes I add them on after the frosting, but they’re edible!

For flowers, I recommend using:

• honeysuckle (childhood fave, nectar of the gods)

• roses (earthy and mild)

• chamomile (grass but make it delicious)

• violets (very sweet + floral)

• hibiscus (very tart + floral, lightly sweet)

• calendula (saffron-esque, best on savory breads)

• lavender (if mint + rosemary had a baby)

• borage (like dipping cucumbers in honey)

• lilacs (tastes like eating a flower, but very pretty)

Candying the flowers (i.e. dipping them in egg whites, coating them in sugar, and then allowing them to dry) helps the texture, but it’s not necessary.

Most importantly, make sure to research the flowers you choose to use well especially if they’re foraged because sometimes beautiful things can kill you. 🖤

[tea-in-the-wild]

Small Prayers: Hestia

Daffodils are in season. I fill my home with them, putting them on every dresser, every free counter-top and windowsill. They’re sunlight in plant form, pulling the light into every room, even when the clouds outside are dark and ominous. They are my mother’s favorite flower and each one is my home.

I have too many coffee mugs and too many tea cups. Every single one of them is a ceramic memory. I hold the small, smooth cup between my cupped hands. As I walk with it, the coffee sloshes slightly like a beating heart.

There’s something about lending a book or a piece of clothing and knowing you might never get it back that’s oddly comforting. Part of my life becoming part of yours. Please keep it; may it bring you joy.

There is cat hair on every surface, no matter how many times you vacuum. Eventually you just come to accept it as the price you pay for warmth and love.

There is no calm more pure, more absolute, than pulling something from the oven. This pie is golden, the kitchen immediately flooded with the scent of rhubarb, strawberries, oranges. I taste the juice that’s bubbled over and it’s sweet and tart and perfect.