Reconciliation Salad

Make up after a lovers' quarrel with this marinated vegetable salad, perfect for picnics, family reunions, or

more intimate summer dinners.

Fill a cauldron half full of water and bring to a boil. (A large saucepan or a 5-quart Dutch oven will

substitute nicely.) Place a metal strainer (the kind often used for frying French fries) inside the cauldron.

Cut 1/4 pound of fresh green beans, symbolizing reconciliation, love, and potency, into diagonal thirds,

symbolizing the triple aspects of maiden/mother/crone. Cut carrots into 1/4 inch disks, like little suns of

lust, until you have 1 cup of carrots. Next slice one small onion into rings, another symbol of healing and

lust. Then take 10 new red potatoes, as uniform in size as possible, and quarter them, visualizing healing

across the four corners of the earth.

One by one, drop the beans into the boiling water as you visualize your lover's touch on your cheeks. Cook

for 2 minutes. Add the carrots, one by one, as you imagine your lover's lips pressed to yours. Add the

onion rings, one by one, as you think of your lover's arms wrapped tightly around you. Cook for an

additional 7 minutes.

Take the strainer full of vegetables from the cauldron, and run cold water over them. (You probably need

a cold shower by now, anyway!) Let the ardor cool for the time is not yet right.

Return to the cauldron and add 1/2 teaspoon salt and the quartered potatoes one by one as list the traits,

physical and non-physical, that you admire about your lover. Cook for 10 minutes, then remove and drain

the potatoes. Set aside with the other vegetables.

In a bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, 1/4 teaspoon dry

mustard, 1/3 cup vinegar, and 1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves, the latter being for love, of course. Mix

well. Combine with the veggies, mix well again. Cover with plastic wrap and set in the refrigerator for at

least 3 hours. The flavors blend over the hours, just as you yourself should be marinating over your lover,

waiting for the right momentÉtonight.

When you are ready to serve the salad, drain the dressing, carefully saving it and setting it aside in a

separate dish. Place the vegetables on a flat, circular serving dish. Arrange the vegetables in a pentacle,

heart, or some other meaningful shape. Serve with the reserved dressing. Makes 6 servings.

If you and your lover have more important things on your minds than finishing your salads, you can always

refrigerate it for tomorrow. It's even better the second time around.

From Gifts for the Goddess on a Cold Winter's Eve

C2001 by Lorna Tedder and Shannon Bailey

Visit www.SpilledCandy.com for more free ebooks and magickal tips and crafts.

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