Yule is a 12 day celebration that draws from Germanic, Roman, and Celtic tradition. Inspired by the celebration of pre-historic times, modern pagans and witches have decided to reawaken the liveliness of the holiday. As a time for celebration, many of us will find ourselves entertaining others. Here are 12 Yule recipes inspired by each night to try for your gatherings!
The Mother’s Night: The Hearth
As the night of the mother this is the perfect night for baking. As the night before the solstice, this makes it the perfect night to prepare a yule log. While the Yule log was traditionally a tree log burned to mark the survival of the cold winter and the coming of warmth and light, in the 19th century it was transformed into Bûche de Noël.
The Winter Solstice: The Longest Night
As a night for attracting abundance and welcoming in the light, the winter solstice should involve some form of abundance. My go to abundance and wealth recipe is Pesto Star Bread. Pesto is made from basil, pine nuts, garlic, olive oil, and cheese and each ingredient has its own metaphysical properties. Basil, for example, can be used for love, luck, good fortune, prosperity, and business.
Mani and Mistletoe: Courage and Protection
While Mistletoe and its berries are poisonous and should not be used for cooking, I think the association with protection and attraction can lead us to a non-life threatening alternative: cranberries. Cranberries can be used to make a delicious cranberry sauce that can be paired with bread, cheese, and crackers for a sweet little snack.
The Deer Mother: Divination and Storytelling
The night of the Deer Mother is seen as an opportunity for storytelling and guidance. What better way to bridge the gap between the two by using a homemade tea recipe with some tea leaves. Choose your herbs carefully and don’t forget to add some honey to sweeten up the tea and add a little something extra to the spell. Gather around with friends and share stories while you drink your tea.
Community: Gift Giving and Fertility
Since the fifth night is the time for community and gathering, it would seem important that the food you prepare could be eaten by a large group of people. There are many recipes that will be prepared on this night of feasting, but drawing from its associations with fertility this night’s recipe is the apple pie. Apples have both scientific and metaphysical associations with fertility. Its antioxidants can improve the quality of sperm and eggs. In Greek mythology, Hera received apples as a gift on her wedding night to promote love and fertility in her marriage.
Eir: The Night og Healing
The goddess Eir is honored on this night and is revered for her medical skill and connection to nature. While her strong connection to herbs draws me towards tea, I think it is important to add a different recipe to the table. Recipes associated with healing often include strong vegetables and fruits, but my favorite immune system builder is homemade yogurt. Making a vanilla yogurt with fruits such as watermelon and adorned with herbs of Eir such as Thyme are a great way to venerate the goddess and draw on a recipe that has both metaphysical and physical healing properties.
Ancestor Night: The Night of Tradition
This is the one night that will not be associated with a specific recipe. Ancestor Night is a night of tradition and connecting to your heritage. For example, my Italian family has an old recipe of chicken cutlets that has been passed down through the generations. My Irish family has a recipe for soda bread that has been passed down as well. Pick one or two recipes from your own tradition to honor on this day.
The Night of Cold: Winter’s Warmth
The eighth night is traditionally associated with snow deities such as Skadi and Ullr. While this association may be a bit of a long shot, I think a great representation of snow can be found in sugar. We all know that sugar cookies are a common practice for this time of year, and while Christmas is over for Christians, we still have four nights to go on with our celebration!
Odin’s Night: The Night of the Gods
While the ninth night has associations with many Gods, December 28th is often referred to as Odin’s night. Drawing from his veneration and the Germanic inspirations that have led to the modern holiday of Yule, the recipe of this night is Mead. Mead is a honey based alcoholic beverage that takes two weeks to set. You may want to prepare it on this night or prepare it a few weeks prior so it is ready.
Spirit of the Home: Night of the Home
The spirit of your home is alive and well on the tenth night of Yule. This is the night to connect with the spirits of your house that live within your walls. While they can not eat you can definitely share a plate of a large meal with them. My favorite home recipe for this ninth is homemade potato fries. I slice up a collection of russet potatoes and sprinkle on some oregano for happiness and connection, thyme for love, and salt and black pepper for protection. Mixing them with a protein dense meal such as chicken breast, or if you want to keep it magical, cook up a salmon for its divine powers of wisdom and prosperity. Adding a green vegetable such as broccoli is also a great way for promoting vitality and prosperity.
Night of Comfort: Hygge
The second to last night is about promoting a cozy and comfortable environment, and what’s more cozy than some homemade hot cocoa. Add some peppermint for restfulness, some cinnamon for luck, or some marshmallow to enhance your divination skills. Hot cocoa is a beautiful drink that can absolutely be magical and fun for a witch honoring Yule time.
Night of Noise: Wassailing
There is no better way to honor the night of wassailing than by serving Wassail. Wassail is a drink that evolved from the old time tradition of singing and dancing, slowly evolving into the celebratory cider that people cheered in the new year with and eventually evolving into a symbol of good health, wassail is a simple recipe that takes about ten days to ferment, so feel free to make it on the solstice so it is ready for this night if you wish. It is made with apple cider, fruit juice (typically orange), winter herbs such as nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves, sugar, alcohol, and fruit.
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