Celebrating Ostara
What I’ve been making & doing to celebrate the Spring Equinox 🌱
Here in the Northern Hemisphere this week it was Ostara, the Spring Equinox: the festival in the Celtic Wheel of the Year that marks a time of transition, and the balance shifting back towards longer, lighter days. Although we’ve got colder weather forecast yet again here in Edinburgh (with hail and sleet this afternoon!) the clocks have just gone forward and signs of Spring are growing abundantly. There’s a feeling of hope and change in the air. This is the true start of the year for me. As the Earth tilts closer and closer towards the sun, we begin the steady ascendance towards Beltane; there is so much seasonal goodness to come in the next weeks and months. Here’s how I’ll be celebrating this beautiful time of promise at home and in nature.
Spring Foraging
This weekend I went on a foraging course in the Pentland Hills and it was just the tonic I needed after a stressful week. Slowing down, engaging all the senses and partaking in some foraging mindfulness was balm for this tired soul. The course with Edinburgh Forage and Eat covered so many early Spring finds, and centred around an introduction to birch sap tapping, something I’m now keen to try in our own garden! I’ll be writing more about the wonders of birch for my paid community next week as I could honestly write and write about it. The best part of the course was noticing all those small signs of Spring that you might not spot unless you’re really looking; I will certainly never look at weeds in the same way again! For beginners, wild garlic is a failsafe plant to forage thanks to its distinctive smell and has so many uses. The season is just beginning, and you can read more guidance here - including sustainable foraging guidelines. Flowering currant is another easy spot that’s unlikely to be confused with other species thanks to its striking pink flowers and blackcurrant scent. Our foraging guide Judith had made the most delicious, soft pink flowering currant cordial that I can’t wait to try myself.
Foraged Baking
As well as the mindful act of foraging itself, I love the time spent in the kitchen afterwards: preserving, pickling, baking and making. If you’re looking for a recipe with wild garlic I can’t recommend wild garlic scones enough! I like the taste of wild garlic best once the sting has been taken out of it by baking or blanching. Wild garlic adds a gorgeous herbal note to cheese scones, particularly lovely with a pinch of cayenne pepper for a spicy kick, served fresh from the oven and slathered in melted butter. I forgot to write down my recipe but I’ll try testing it again when I next get my hands on wild garlic. Rosie Birkett has a wonderful recipe on her recently started Substack, which I thoroughly recommend. The scones would also be perfect with Anna Jones’ wild garlic and puy lentil soup, which is a Spring favourite in our house. This is simple, seasonal, and mindful cooking to soothe the soul.
Decorating for Ostara
This last week I’ve been slowly starting my Spring decorating. I’m gathering branches of blossom to put in big glass jars, switching my artwork and textiles for something lighter, brighter and more Springlike (look out for a kitchen update over on my Instagram) and adding decorative hand-painted eggs from one of my favourite Scottish makers, Amy of Pops and Piaf (who I interviewed for my paid community here!). Setting a seasonal table is one of my favourite traditions at each time of year and especially around Ostara. I’m thinking pastels, gingham and frilly tulips from British growers Smith and Munson via Rose and Ammi here in Edinburgh. I’ll be getting out my best crockery too, with K C Hossack scalloped plates and homemade Liberty print napkins tied into bunny ears perched on top. Decorating for the new season in our new space is even more exciting with new corners to style and vintage finds to make homes for. I can’t wait!
Opting Outside
We are lucky to live near so many green spaces in Edinburgh and I plan to be outside as much as possible over the next few weeks spotting signs of Spring, whatever the weather! National Trust properties begin to reopen and I’ll be taking my camera and sketchbook out to capture the Spring flowers in bloom - is there anything more pleasing than a sea of cheery daffodil heads, bobbing in the Spring breeze? One of our favourite spots is Inveresk Lodge Garden (pictured below in the Springtime) just outside Edinburgh where the flowers were beginning to emerge last weekend. A flask of tea and slice of something homemade is mandatory (idea to follow). Is it just me, or does a cup of tea just taste even better outside?! Pop a simple picnic in a basket and head to a quiet green space near you to.
Rhubarb, Vanilla and Almond Cake
One of the seasonal Spring highlights for me has got to be rhubarb, its bright pink stems bringing so much cheer to desserts and bakes. I love poaching rhubarb with blood orange and vanilla, which adds a sweet yet aromatic note. This rhubarb, vanilla and almond cake balances sweet and sharp, rich and wholesome flavours. It gets tastier each day as the vanilla further infuses too, and would be lovely packed up in brown paper for a picnic or served warm with custard after a crisp Spring walk.
To make the cake, you will need:
120g butter
120g sugar
90g self-raising flour
30g ground almonds
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
100g rhubarb, half chopped through and half to lay on top
2 tbsp flaked almonds.
Preheat the oven to 160C Fan and grease and line a 20cm round baking tin. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, followed by a little flour, then fold in the remaining flour, almonds and vanilla extract. Gently fold through half the chopped rhubarb.
Pour the batter into the prepared tin, then level the surface and place the rest of the chopped rhubarb gently on top. Scatter with the flaked almonds and bake in the oven for around 45 minutes until golden brown and cooked through.
What are you doing and making to celebrate the arrival of Spring?
If you enjoy my monthly seasonal newsletters, do consider joining us in my paid subscriber community for more regular posts. Together in this wee corner of the Internet we are creating a beautiful community of like-minded old souls who want to slow down, simplify and connect with the seasons. Here’s a flavour of what I’ve been posting over there this last month:
A Sneak Peek of the Reading Nook
Early Spring in the Scottish Borders
Sow, Grow, Harvest, Rest Book Group: March
Blood Orange Posset with Blood Orange, Fennel and Almond Biscuits
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Thanks so much for being here! See you next month, when I’ll be sharing some exciting news too… Xxx