Simnel Cake

A wonderful spiced and fruited cake which heralds the advent of Spring, simnel cake has a fascinating cultural heritage with roots that stretch back to the Romans and Athenians. In Britain, known as the Shrewsbury Simnel, it is simply made using white flour, fragrant spices and is generously studded with dried fruits and pungent peel.


Like a Christmas cake, it is covered with pale sweet almond paste. The decoration is plain - twelve little balls of smooth paste. A specially baked simnel cake is a wonderful gift to take to your mother for Matronalia, Mother's Day, or Mothering Sunday Tea Time. Decorate it with crystalised flowers and tie some yellow ribbon around the side.

INGREDIENTS:

For the almond paste:

• 400 g icing sugar, sifted
• 250 g ground almonds...

I am so sorry to do this to you, but this post has been moved to my new website, Pagan Calendar, and can be found in its entirety here: Simnel Cake

Hymn to Hera for Matronalia

Let us sing now of Hera, the women's goddess.
she who rules from her throne of gold.
Let us sing now of Hera, child of earth,
daughter of that most ancient of goddesses.
Let us sing now of the queen of gods....

... I am so sorry to do this to you, but this post has been moved to my new website, Widdershins, and can be found in its entirety here: Hymn to Hera for Matronalia

Celebrating Matronalia

Patti Wigington at Paganwiccan.about.com wrote this nice little description about Matronalia:

 In ancient Rome, the holiday of Matronalia was celebrated each year at the beginning of March. This annual "festival of women" was held in honor of Juno Luciana, a goddess who watched over married women and those in childbirth. This aspect of Juno was associated with childbirth. The name lucina was thought to have come from the Latin word lux (light); thus, when a child was born it was said to have been “brought to light”....

... I am so sorry to do this to you, but this post has been moved to my new website, Pagan Calendar, and can be found in its entirety here: Celebrating Matronalia