Sample BOS

MM Everyone,
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My BOS
I have always wanted my BOS to be made from wood about a 9x12. That
holds 8 1/2x11 paper with the, version that I like, wheel of the
year engraved on the front. Due to a common problem of present day
lack of tools, I can not design what I want.
So after much resolution I have decide to go ahead and make one :
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I have designed a sheet that represents my feeling in my path for the
front
GRIMOIRE in arched multi color font in the middle of my top graphics
the upper left graphic has a design of a hand with the index finder
pointed upward with a ribbon tied around it with To remind me
always of rule 3X3
{ For everything you do ,
you shall get a reaction three times
or three times greater
back upon you}
directly above it is the words 13 Goals (for the 13 goals of a witch)
to the right is a graphic, the wheel of the year with the Sabbaths
written around it then in red circle underneath is the dates of each
Sabbath then in a circle under that the # of the months 1-12
directly above this is words for goal #1
1. Know Yourself
on the wheel of the year in upper left corner I place the #2 goal
2. Know you craft
in the center I placed #3
3. Learn
below the wheel I placed #4
4. Apply knowledge to wisdom
between the hand and the wheel I wrote
AND IF IT HARM NONE DO WHAT THOU WILT
under the hand on the left I continued the 13 GOALS
6. Keep your words in good order
7. Keep your thoughts in good order
under the wheel and the 4th goal I place a Hawk and between her
wings I places goal 8.
8. Celebrate Life
lower potion of the page I place a graphic I found which residents
the 4 elements
It has clouds at the top
two geese swimming in a lake on the left
and fire on the right
and two women walking through the woods on the bottom
to from like a circle ( although the element are not in the correct
places)
North (earth)
West (water) East (Air)
South (Fire)
I like the graphic and its representation of the elements. On each
approached element I place the elemental:
Gnome (earth) Undine (Water) Salamander (fire) Sylph (air)
In the middle of the graphic of the elements I wrote the 5th goal
5. Achieve balance
around the graphic I wrote 9th 10th 11th & 12th.
9. Attune with the cycles of the earth
10. Breathe and eat correctly
11. exercise the body
12. Mediate
at the bottom right corner I wrote in big letters
13. Honor your God & Goddess.
In my grimoire I plan to only put spells & herbs
I will sub divide them accord
etc.
Love
Forgiving
Money
Work
Luck
Candles
etc.
Herbs by name
Later I may transfer info from my BOS about jells lotions & soaps
that I use.
For my index in BOS

I picked up a 16 colored tab three ring index
(1) Sabbaths and Esbats
(2) rituals
(3) Materials ( Crystals, stones, metals, woods)
(4) Recipes ( foods & potions)
(5) herbs
(6) incense and oils
(7)magical tools and techniques
(8)meditations and visualizations
(9) poems and prayers
(10) mythology
(11) astrology
(12) philosophy
(10) divination
(11) crystals and gems
(12)correspondences
(13) soap making
(14) Candles
(15) lotions
(16) God & Goddess
Currently All my information is on my PC under a BOS program I
purchased that divides the contents as I have above. I plan to
eventually print out all my info and add it to my BOS
All my thoughts and personal feeling I have been keeping in a spiral
notebook that also has 3 hole so it can easily be transferred to
BOS.
I will probably only put typed and printed a special font (if I ever
find the one I want)
Due to the fact that I am dyslexic and my handwriting resembles the
scribble of a Dr on the RX pad I don't want to hand write.
I would only be focused on my errors and horrible writing if I did
(oh the problem with being a dyslexia Virgo) LOL......

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Dedication Page
Underneath the bright moon light,
I dedicate myself tonight.
To learn the ways, rituals, and rites,
Study divinations, moons, tools, & paths with all my might.
To follow the Wiccan Rede,
Become attune to others needs.
Learn about all the herbs, tool, solitary,
elements, elementals and about astrology
So smote it be
this
Wednesday, 31 day of October 2001.

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The Charge of the Goddess
by Lady Morgana Emania & Lady Moon Willow @
Crystall Waterfall
I, who am the beauty of the green earth,
The white moon among the stars
The Mysteries of the water,
Call upon your soul to arise and come to me,
For I am the soul of nature that gives life to the universe.
From me all things proceed
And unto me all things return.
Let my worship be in the heart that rejoices
For behold, all acts of love & pleasure are my rituals.
Let there be beauty & strength,
power & compassion
Honor & humility,
Mirth & reverence with in you.
Know that your seeking & yearning will avail you not
Unless you know the mystery
For if that which you seek
You find not within your heart,
you will never find without.
For I have been with you from the beginning
And I am that which is attained
At the end of desire
Blessed BE.

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Dedication of This Book of Shadow
As I write each word and deed,
with careful thought and harmony.
I beg of the Creator above
To come down and Bless it with LOVE
I ask out of humility
to prevent the unwelcome, it contents see.
By the power of the roaring sea
The power of the land all around me
From the depths of the flames light
And the all power from a moonlighted night
Infuse this book with all your mite.
so that it will be my guiding light
Shower it from every direction
It ensure I learn through it pages & reflection
Creator above, help me reach Divinity
So this book will continue though infinity
That I may remember the rule of three
So smote it Be.

Rule of three fold
For everything you do, you shall get a reaction three times or three
times greater back upon you.

Sweet and Sour Veggie Chili Recipe

Here's a recipe to use vinegar

Sweet and Sour Veggie Chili Recipe:

• 2 onions, chopped
• 2TBSP grapeseed oil
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 2 cans dark red kidney beans
• 1 can black beans
• 1 can corn
• 2 TBSP Chili powder
• 1 cup coffee or water
• 2 TBSP brown sugar (to taste)
• 1 TBSP vinegar (to taste)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Sauté the onions in oil until soft. Add tomatoes, kidney beans, black beans, corn and chili powder. Stir. Add one cup coffee (or water), more or less to get the consistency you want. Finally, add the brown sugar and vinegar to achieve a sweet and sour flavor. Let chili simmer for 30 minutes.

Vinegar its the bite to life

 

A little splash can make a big difference in your health when it comes to vinegar. Who knew that this sour liquid could be so sweet for your body while enhancing the flavor of so many dishes?
Since vinegar was one of the ingredients we choose for our ingredient of the week contest, I thought I would do a little research on the health benefits of vinegar and share my mom’s famous sweet and sour chili recipe. It always leaves people raving!
Although vinegar (apple cider is most often written about) has been touted as a cure-all for many years, little research has actually been done on it. But what researchers and vinegar advocates seem to agree upon is that vinegar improves our body’s absorption of nutrients, including calcium (one of the reasons it’s great to have a vinegar-based salad dressing on your calcium rich leafy greens), helps control blood sugar levels by slowing the breakdown of carbohydrates into simple sugars and can aid in weight loss when it is used as a substitute for mayonnaise and cream in dressings, sandwich spreads and marinades

How To Make a Wonderful Spicy Tomato Chutney

This chutney is first and foremost sweet, before it kicks you from behind with some chili heat and delivers the taste of some whole spices that are mysterious enough to add some intrigue. The mustard seeds, fennel, cumin and onion seeds you'll be using in this recipe fill the kitchen with their aromatic scents as you simmer the chutney for over an hour. The result is sloppy - there is no way around that unless you want to reduce your mixture so much that you'll be disappointed by the loss of volume. The more of this condiment you have, the happier you'll be.



So about that sugar; you will have to note that I am using late season dry-farmed Early Girl tomatoes which by their very nature are incredibly sweet. So I have almost halved the amount of sugar from the original recipe. If you are trying this out with less sweet tomatoes, you might want to consider increasing the amount of sugar again to compensate.

The following recipe makes enough to fill about 8 jars. It is easily halved.

Ingredients
8 tablespoons of vegetable oil
2 tsp mustard seeds (brown or black)
2 tsp onion seeds
2 tsp fennel seeds
2 tsp cumin seeds
4 dried red chilis
1 tsp red chilli powder
2 cups raw organic cane sugar*
2 1/2 cups white distilled vinegar
4 1/2 lbs sweet dry-farmed Early Girl tomatoes
salt to taste

Equipment
8 x sterilized 8 oz canning jars

Method
- Measure all of the ingredients out first and core the tomatoes.
- Gently heat the oil in a large high-sided pan (the spices will spit)
- Add all of the seeds, the chilis and powder to the oil.
- Cook one or two minutes until the seeds start to pop.
- Reduce the heat to low and add the vinegar and sugar stirring until dissolved.
- Add all of the tomatoes, bring to a simmer for an hour.
- After an hour, whilst the chutney is simmering away, pick out as many skins as you - can with a pair of tongs. The skins should, at this time, be separating themselves away from the tomatoes and floating to the top almost like discarded condoms.
Continue cooking until the tomatoes have evenly broken down. Total cooking time about 1.5 hours.
- Pick out the 4 x whole chilis and discard.
- Transfer the chutney to the jars according to the manafacturer's instructions. Keep for up to two months. Refrigerate and consume within 2 weeks after opening.

You may now lick the spoon (but be careful not to burn your tongue!)

Fried Green Tomatoes

Fried Green Tomatoes Recipe

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• Prep time: 10 minutes
• Cook time: 20 minutes

If you can find it, use fine white cornmeal, which is the primary cornmeal used in the South. Buttermilk adds flavor and tang, but is not strictly necessary.

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Ingredients

• 3 medium, firm green tomatoes
• Salt
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning (optional)
• 1/2 cup milk or buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup cornmeal
• 1/2 cup fine dry bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup peanut oil or other vegetable oil

Method

1 Cut unpeeled tomatoes into 1/2 inch slices. Sprinkle slices with salt. Let tomato slices stand for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, place in separate shallow bowls: the flour and Cajun seasoning (if using), buttermilk and egg, and bread crumbs and cornmeal.
2 Heat the peanut oil in a skillet on medium heat. Beat the egg and the buttermilk together. Dip tomato slices in the flour-seasoning mix, then buttermilk-egg mixture, then the cornmeal-bread crumb mix. In the skillet, fry half of the coated tomato slices at a time, for 3-5 minutes on each side or until brown. Set the cooked tomatoes on paper towels to drain. These are fantastic with a little Tabasco sauce or remoulade.

Yield: Serves 4 as a side dish.

Preservation Principles in Chutney

Preservation Principles in Chutney

What is ‘chutney’?
‘Chutney’ is a relish-type condiment; its increasing popularity reflects the inclusion of ethnic world cuisines in the Western diet.

The term ‘chutney’ includes several different varieties of sauce-type foods, drawn from traditional East Indian cuisine. The main ingredient may be an herb such as cilantro or mint; a flavoring ingredient such as coconut, onion, ginger, tamarind; or, in the most common form, chopped fruit or vegetables, simmered with spices, onion, sugar and vinegar. Fruit-based chutneys are usually cooked, then canned or refrigerated. Other chutneys like cilantro, onion, coconut, etc. are usually eaten fresh, with minimal, if any, cooking.

Fruit chutneys are most commonly available and varieties include mango, apple, apricot, cranberry, date, papaya, peach, pear, pineapple, plum, tomato and mixed fruit, to which raisins and nuts may be added to complement the texture. The result is a sweet-sour-spicy-hot versatile blend—an adventure for the taste buds.

Are there special spices commonly used in fruit chutney?
Chili powder or red pepper flakes are most common, but others include ginger (usually ground or chopped fresh ginger), garlic, turmeric, and curry powder (a mixture of ground spices like cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, coriander seed, cumin, fenugreek, mustard seed, nutmeg). Other seasonings may include salt, pepper, sugar, tamarind paste, vinegar and lemon juice.

How is chutney used? Chutney is a perfect accompaniment to East Indian food; however, it can also be used as a side dish, sandwich spread, dip, an accompaniment to cheese and crackers, or as an ingredient to enhance the flavor of everyday dishes like chicken salad or casseroles.

What helps preserve the chutney?
Several different factors contribute to the ‘preserved’ nature of this product:

1. The acidity (low pH) of the chutney prevents growth of several spoilage and pathogenic bacteria, molds and yeasts. This acidity is derived from the added vinegar and the natural acids of the fruit.
2. Cooking the mixture to concentrate it lowers available moisture that is needed for microbial growth. The cooking step also kills most microorganisms that may be present.
3. Processing the filled jars in a canner uses additional heat to kill spoilage organisms that might contaminate the product as jars are filled and to produce a vacuum seal for later storage. If the two-piece canning lid is applied correctly, air is driven out of the headspace while the jars are in the canner and a vacuum seal is formed upon cooling. For most chutneys, a boiling water canning process is adequate, but other foods may require a pressure process.
4. During storage in the sealed jar, oxygen and additional microbial contamination is kept from the product. Too much oxygen left in the jar will cause interactions with food components that lead to quality losses (for example, undesirable changes in color, texture, and flavor).

What problems could arise from improper preparation and processing of chutney?
If the cooking and canning steps are improperly carried out, spoilage microorganisms could grow, leading to product loss. In a worst-case scenario, specifically if the product is not acidified sufficiently (below pH 4.6), and not heat-processed adequately, pathogenic bacterial spores may survive, germinate and form toxin on room temperature storage – such as spores of the potentially fatal Clostridium botulinum. Also, if air is not excluded, physical and chemically-induced quality deterioration of the product may occur.

Where can I find recommended procedures for home-canned chutney?
Our tested mango chutney recipe is available at this website:
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_06/mango_chutney.html
Since chutneys are essentially pickled condiments, all of our selections are found with pickled products, at this website:
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/chutney.html

Where can I get more information on canning and preserving?
The National Center for Home Food Preservation has several online factsheets and resources on safe home food-preservation. This publication is a good starting point: http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/publications_usda.html

In particular, this chapter provides general information for the novice food preserver: http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/usda/utah_can_guide_01.pdf or http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_home.html

Refer to this factsheet for information on mangoes, such as how to cut and prepare the fruit: http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/nchfp/factsheets/the_mango.html

Tips:

1. When cooking with vinegar, lemon juice or acid foods, use a stainless steel stockpot. This prevents leaching of metal into the food, and pitting of the vessel which might occur with other metals such as aluminum and cast iron.
2. Caution: Handling green mangoes may irritate the skin of some people in the same way as poison ivy. (They belong to the same plant family.) To avoid this reaction, wear plastic or rubber gloves while working with raw green mango. Do not touch your face, lips or eyes after touching or cutting raw green mangoes until all traces are washed away.

---

Prepared by Elaine M. D'Sa, Ph.D., Research Coordinator with the National Center for Home Food Preservation, Department of Foods and Nutrition, College of Family and Consumer Sciences, The University of Georgia, Athens. November 2005.

Images are courtesy of the National Center for Home Food Preservation, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA.

This material is based upon work supported by the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under Agreement No. 00-51110-9762.

Document Use:

Permission is granted to reproduce these materials in whole or in part for educational purposes only (not for profit beyond the cost of reproduction) provided the authors and the University of Georgia receive acknowledgment and this notice is included:

Reprinted with permission of the University of Georgia. E. D'Sa. 2005. Preservation Principles in Chutney. Athens, GA: The University of Georgia, Cooperative Extension Service.

References to commercials products, services, and information is made with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and no endorsement by the University of Georgia, U.S. Department of Agriculture and supporting organizations is implied. This information is provided for the educational information and convenience of the reader.

Making Chutney

Green Tomato-Apple Chutney
Four jars (about 1 quart, 1l)
Since I have several tomato plants growing I am going to make Chutney this year. I haven't made it before but I've canned lots and cooked for a very long time and raised a happy healthy family of 10 hungry people who never complained or went hungry. This will be fun.

I've been told not to try to peel the skins on the green tomatoes as the skins refused to budge. I was a bit worried but In the finished chutney, they’d softened nicely so my concerns were unfounded. If you don’t have shallots, use one red onion, thinly sliced.
To make sure to stir continuously during the last few minutes of cooking, just to make sure nothing burns as the chutney turns jam-like. I’d didn’t preserve them in jars using any canning method, figuring I’d eat it within a month or so.

1 3/4 pound (825g) green tomatoes, cored and cut into chunks
2 firm apples, cored, and cut into chunks (peeled or unpeeled)
1 cup (100g) peeled and sliced shallots
1 to 2 dried chiles, split and seeded, or 1 fresh chile, seeded and finely chopped
1/3 cup (65g) chopped candied ginger
1 cup (250ml) apple cider vinegar
1 cup (160g) golden raisins
1 cup (180g) light or dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon yellow or black mustard seeds
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
zest of one orange or 1/4 cup (45g) chopped candied orange peel

1. Mix together all the ingredients in a large, non-reactive pot. (See Note)
2. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a low boil and cook, stirring frequently, for 45 minutes, until the mixture is thick and jam-like.
3. Once finished, ladle the chutney into clean jars.

Storage: Chutney will keep in the refrigerator for about one month.
Note: Non-reactive means one that is made of a material that won’t react with something acidic, such as stainless steel or glazed enamel.I have never made chutney before but I've cooked and canned and this year I will have plenty of tomatoes if all goes well, so I am thinking of trying this recipe myself.