Wine and cakes have become de rigeur for the ending of a ritual.  Practitioners use whatever they can bring.  I have partaken of Kool-Aid and Oreos as well as ale and oatmeal cookies. Some of my readers may have been there, done that.  I thought I would offer up a few recipes for you to try for your next Esbat and/or Sabbat.  

CAPILLAIRE

(from my Workbook)

   Place the following in a wide-mouthed one gallon jar or crock:

1/2 lb. Acacia or Orange honey

1/4 lb. preserved ginger

Juice from 2 lemons, peel from 1

2 oz. candied lemon peel

Juice from 1 med. orange, peel from 1/2 the orange

1 1/2 glass red currant juice

   Pour on a gallon of strong white wine, mix to dissolve honey, then leave undisturbed for one month.  Strain off liquor.  Serve either chilled or warm, according to season. If you wish, place cheesecloth over the jar mouth before putting on the lid.

 

MAY WINE.

  Similar to Capillaire but with woodruff and cinammon:

1.5 litre dry white wine--Chablis, Colombard, or Rhine

1 T. honey (wildflower honey is especially nice)

Sliced medium orange with peel 

1small lemon peel

2 tsp. woodruff

1/2 stick cinnamon

   Twist lemon peel and put all ingredients in a ceramic bowl or wide-mouthed jug.  Allow to sit for at least three days--preferably one week.  Remove lemon peel.  Pour liquor through cheesecloth or clean nylon and squeeze well to get the orange juice.   Serve slightly chilled. 

 

  I found the next two recipes in a book about Celtic baked goods.  They are basically the same thing but one is a sweet version:

BARA CEIRCH

Welsh Oatcakes

   This recipe is from a now-defunct food magazine, The Pleasures of Cooking.  These oatcakes or thin and crisp, more cracker-like.

2 c. rolled oats (not instant)

2 Tbs. unsalted butter

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 c. hot water

   Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, combine 1 1/2 cups of oats with the butter and salt.  Process for about 20 seconds, until the mixture resembles coarse meal or flour.  With the motor running, add the hot water through the feed tube and process until combined (about 10 seconds).

   Turn the dough out onto a surface sprinkled with about a third of the remaining 1/2 cup of oats. Flatten the dough into a 3 inch circle, sprinkle it with another third of the remaining oats, and roll out to a thickness of an 1/8th of an inch.  Cut into 2 1/2 inch circles with a glass or cookie cutter and place on a baking sheet sprinkled with the remaining oats.  Reroll the scraps to make more circles.  Bake until the edges are crisp and brown, about 20-25 minutes.  Yield: 22 oatcakes.

 

SCOTTISH OATCAKES

From Telegraph Hill House, San Francisco, CA.

Their recipe was printed in The New York Times several years ago.

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 cup boiling water

1 c. sugar

2 c. rolled oats (not instant)

2 c. unbleached flour

2 c. wheat bran

1 tsp. salt

1 1/4 c. (2 1/2 sticks) butter

 

   Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Dissolve the baking soda in the boiling water and let stand until cool.  Combine all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl (or a food processor bowl) and cut in the butter.  Add the baking soda mixture. if using a food processor, pulse until the dough rides the blade.  If by hand, work in with a fork and then gently knead the dough in the bowl for a few seconds.

   Turn the dough out on a floured board and roll it out to 1/8 inch. Cut into 2-inch squares and place on a greased baking sheet.  Or, form the dough into tablespoon-sized balls, place on the greased baking sheet and press down with the bottom of a glass that's been dipped in cornstarch to prevent sticking.  Press evenly to make a thin cookie.

   Bake for 10 to 15 minutes.  If the dough is thicker than 1/8 inch when raw, the cookies will need more time to cook.  They are done when the edges or brown and crisp.  Cool on wire racks.

  Baked goods can be frozen for future use.