Yule Round-up + Yule/Christmas Baking

 

Yule/the Winter Solstice, is almost here. This year it's on Tuesday 21st December. The actual (scientific) time of the Winter Solstice (see below for more on that) will be 10.59am EST/15.58pm GMT. Find the time in your country here: https://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/winter-solstice.html

 

Note: If you're in the Southern Hemisphere it's almost time for Litha aka Midsummer/the Summer Solstice. Here are my Litha celebration ideas posts:

Litha/Midsummer Celebration Ideas (also a post about no-yeast dinner rolls): https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2017/06/baking-no-yeast-dinner-rolls-and.html

Celebrating Litha/Summer: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2018/06/celebrating-litha-summer.html

Litha Inspiration: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2019/06/litha-inspiration_17.html

Litha + Summer Inspiration: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2020/06/litha-summer-inspiration.html

Litha Round-up: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2021/06/litha-round-up.html

 

The past few years I've written celebration and inspiration posts for Yule. During 2021 I've written round-up posts for the sabbats, featuring my past posts and articles from other sites. So here is Yule's. I've also included a Yule/Christmas baking section at the end. :)

 

Yule, also known as Midwinter and the Winter Solstice, is the final sabbat of the calendar year. It's either the 1st or 2nd sabbat on the Wheel of the Year, depending on whether you consider Samhain as the end of one year and the start of the new year, or Yule as the beginning of the new cycle. I've written about this before in my Celebrating Yule/Christmas post. Opinion varies on this and some people also celebrate it at Imbolg/Imbolc in early February (which is the first sabbat of the new calendar year). I consider Samhain the end of one year and the start of the new one, but it's up to you. :) 

The Winter Solstice is actually a scientific event (when the North Pole is furthest away from the sun), making it the shortest day and longest night of the year. However, Yule, which celebrates the return of the light since the days will start gradually getting longer from then on, is often celebrated with it. It's the direct opposite to the Summer Solstice (linked to Litha) in June. You can read more about it here: https://www.almanac.com/content/first-day-winter-winter-solstice

Themes of Yule include the light increasing, the birth of the Sun God, the story of the Holly and the Oak Kings, new beginnings and winter. It's also considered the official start of the winter season, depending on your viewpoint. Its other name Midwinter, could be because Samhain at the end of October marked the end of summer for people in the past. This sabbat also has links with Christmas.

 

Here are my previous Yule posts on the blog:

 

Yule: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2013/12/yule.html

Yule 2014: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2014/12/yule-2014.html

Yule 2015: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2015/12/yule-2015.html

Yule 2016 + Origins of Father Christmas: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2016/12/yule-2016-origins-of-father-christmas.html 

Yule Celebration Ideas: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2017/12/yule-celebration-ideas.html

Yule 2017: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2017/12/yule-2017.html

Celebrating Yule/Christmas: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2018/12/celebrating-yulechristmas.html

Yule 2018: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2018/12/yule-2018.html

Yule Inspiration: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2019/12/yule-inspiration.html

Yule 2019: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2019/12/yule-2019.html

More Yule Inspiration: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2020/12/more-yule-inspiration.html

Yule 2020: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2020/12/yule-2020.html

 

Now here are some posts from other sites:   

 

Info about Yule: https://thesilverpentacle.ca/blogs/witchcraft-101/yule-a-long-winters-night

Guide to the Winter Solstice (and yoga inspiration!): https://roamingyogi.co/winter-solstice

More info and ideas for celebrating: https://www.itsmysustainablelife.com/celebrating-winter-solstice-the-folklore-facts-fun/

Winter Solstice and Yule decoration ideas from The Peculiar Brunette: https://www.thepeculiarbrunette.com/yule-decorations/ (I think this is an updated version of a past post)

12 free/low-cost ways to celebrate (Witchcrafted Life): https://witchcraftedlife.com/12-free-and-low-cost-ways-to-celebrate-yule-and-the-winter-holiday-season/

Post and video with solitary Yule celebration ideas: https://www.xristiwitch.com/blog/solitaryyule

Holiday rituals for Yule, Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve: https://www.sagegoddess.com/goddess-guide/simple-and-magical-holiday-rituals/

 

I usually have a chocolate Yule log and put candles on top to represent the return of the light. I occasionally make my own (see baking section below for more on that), but most often I buy one because it's easier! This year's is from Marks & Spencer.

I also light red and green candles since Yule is a fire festival. And sometimes I make hot spicy milk in the evening, based on a recipe from The Kitchen Witch by Soraya. This year I thought I might make some hot chocolate.

Yule/Christmas Baking

My chocolate Yule log from 2014! :)

 

In my Madron post this year, I included an autumn baking section, so I thought it would be good to do the same for Yule. Here are some ideas for Yule and/or Christmas baking. :) 

So, as I mentioned, I normally buy a chocolate Yule log, but I made my own a couple of times (for both Yule and Christmas 2014) and one year I baked a Christmas vanilla roll cake. You can see them below.

I made a Christmas vanilla roll cake in 2013 and again in 2019 using this recipe:  http://atreatsaffair.com/christmas-vanilla-roll-cake-recipe/

My chocolate Yule log in 2014: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2014/12/yule-2014.html

The recipe was from Co-op magazine and I don't think it's online, but here's a similar one: https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/chocolate-yule-log/ 

Red velvet Buche de Noel (Yule log) I baked for Christmas 2014: https://realfood.tesco.com/recipes/red-velvet-buche-de-noel.html

For Yule 2019 I made this Spiced Christmas Yule log: https://www.coop.co.uk/recipes/spiced-christmas-yule-log

 

Soft and chewy ginger cookies I baked just before Yule 2017:  https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/soft-and-chewy-ginger-cookies/

For New Year 2019 I made these gingerbread cookies from Handle the Heat: https://handletheheat.com/gingerbread-cookies/  

Here are some more cookie recipes for Yule: https://otherworldlyoracle.com/yule-cookies/

 

For Christmas 2016 I made a frosted vanilla cookie cake based on this recipe: https://www.lifeloveandsugar.com/baileys-frosted-vanilla-cookie-layer-cake/   

For Christmas 2017 and New Year 2018 I baked a white chocolate wonderland cake and filled drop cookies. The cake recipe is by Tanya Burr, I can't find it online but I shared similar recipes in the post linked above. And here is the drop cookies recipe: https://www.littlehouseliving.com/old-fashioned-christmas-cookie-recipes.html

Gingerbread sheet cake from Christmas 2019 (Handle the Heat): https://handletheheat.com/gingerbread-sheet-cake/

And last Christmas' cake recipe, based on this gingerbread poke cake: http://www.fantasticalsharing.com/2020/12/gingerbread-poke-cake.html   

Finally, if you're vegan here are a couple of vegan baking links:

Vegan eggnog muffins for Yule: https://www.thewholesomewitch.com/eggnog-muffins-yule-holidays/

Vegan recipe round-up for Yule (variety of foods): https://waywardinspiration.com/vegan-recipe-roundup-for-yule/

 

Hope you enjoyed the post and it gave you plenty of ideas for celebrating Yule and/or doing some holiday baking! :) Things have seemed a little better than last year in regard to the pandemic, but with cases of the new variant rising we all need to be careful. Depending on current restrictions where you are, I hope you 're still able to celebrate in some way if you want to. :)

I will post about my Yule celebrations either next week or the week after (since it's Christmas next weekend). Happy Yule/Winter Solsice! (Or Litha/Summer Solstice!) 

 

Photo at top of post: Worthing Christmas tree. Moonsparkle 2021.