Lammas 2026

The Saturday before last (1st August) it was Lammas. (Although some people may celebrate on 31st July or 2nd August.) I normally celebrate by baking, most often gingerbread. This year I made gingerbread and bread (a mix), like I have for the past couple of years.

The gingerbread recipe is one from BBC Good Food that I've used for the past few years: https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/gingerbread_men_99096

I could only find the smaller gingerbread cutter, so I made some "men" shapes and a few round ones too. I made up my own icing (icing sugar mixed with water) which I do most often. I iced some completely. Here's a pic:

The decorating got a bit messy! lol.

 

Spring-Summer Update (2026) + Happy Lammas!

I normally post on Sundays or Mondays but didn't manage to get this finished yesterday, so I'm posting today instead. :)

We're just over halfway through the year, so it's time for my spring-summer update! :) You can see my winter-spring (first update of 2026) here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2026/04/winter-spring-update-2026-happy-beltane.html

 

Easter was at the beginning of April this year. I baked a frosted white chocolate Easter cake (one if my favourite cakes to make for Easter). I also had a family meal and got a couple of chocolate eggs. 

At the beginning of May I celebrated Beltane. You can see my post about it here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2026/05/beltane-2026.html

During May I baked some condensed milk after tea cakes for my mum's birthday (using this recipe from Lavender & Lovage). I've made them before and they're nice. 

I also made pico de gallo using this recipe from The Doctor's Kitchen: https://www.thedoctorskitchen.com/recipes/pico-de-gallo 

I made it along with some potato salad (using a recipe from Apply to Face which is one of my favourites) to have with some food for the supermarket when I watched the Eurovision Song Contest. I didn’t take a picture but you can see what the potato salad looked like in my May Update post from 2019: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2019/05/may-update.html

 

In mid-June it was Litha. I wrote a post about my celebrations: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2026/06/litha-2026.html

 

I haven't been doing much else apart from going to Happy Café (Action for Happiness' Meetup events).

Here are a couple of photos I took during the spring:

Ship Street area, Brighton- April.

Litha 2026

The Sunday before last (21st June) it was Litha aka Midsummer/the Summer Solstice. I usually celebrate this sabbat by making salad and lemonade. However, this year I couldn’t get hold of lemons easily (left it a bit last minute) so I made limeade instead, lol. 

I normally make tomato and onion salad for Litha. My favourite recipe is from The Kitchen Witch book by Soraya. Last year I'd lost the book, so I partly based my salad on a recipe from This Italian Kitchen. I've found the book since then though, so this year it was back to the usual recipe!

I had the salad for lunch along with some food from the supermarket- chicken drumsticks, garlic ciabatta slices, Doritos and guacamole. It was quite nice. Here's a pic:

 

 

Beltane 2026

The Friday before last (1st May) it was Beltane. (Some people celebrate from sundown on 30th April to sundown on 1st May.) I usually make guacamole or salad for this sabbat. In recent years I've tended to make a salad and buy guacamole, most often kachumbari (Kenyan tomato and onion salad). But in 2019 I made both.

This year I decided to make an avocado salad, which I've made a couple of times before. The recipe is from Precious Core (whose recipe for kachumbari I also use): https://www.preciouscore.com/simple-healthy-avocado-salad/  

It's similar to kachumbari (I shared both of them in my Salads for Beltane + Extra Ideas! post in 2024). I had it for my lunch with some ciabatta rolls, savoury eggs, feta parcels, chicken sausages, sea salt and vinegar crisps (chips), and onion and garlic dip. 

Here's a pic: 

The cutlery got in the salad a bit!

 

Winter-Spring Update (2026) + Happy Beltane!

We've just passed the first quarter of the year, so it's time for the first seasonal update of 2026 (winter-spring)! For the past few years I've written quarterly updates (from "season to season"). I previously wrote monthly updates in 2019 and then "two monthly" (two months at a time) ones in 2020, but found that quarterly was better for me. So I'm going to carry that on this year. :)

You can see my autumn-winter 2025 update here if you like: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2026/01/christmas-spiced-gingerbread-cake.html

 

As with last year, I didn't really do much during January. At the beginning of February I celebrated Imbolg/Imbolc. You can read my post about it here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2026/02/imbolg-2026.html

At the beginning of March it was my birthday. I got a few presents and a red velvet cake from Marks & Spencer. I also had takeaway from Nando's. 

Then in mid-late March it was Oestara/Ostara aka the Spring Equinox. You can read my post about my celebrations here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2026/03/oestara-2026.html

I went to the park as part of my celebrations for Oestara (see the post above) and I also went to another park the following week. I went around sunset but ended up getting there later, so it was going by the time I got to the park. It was still quite a nice evening though.

Here are a couple of photos:

View by Hove Park.

Oestara 2026

I normally post on Sundays or Mondays but I was later with a post on my entertainment blog Star Sparkle Blog, so got behind in general. So today's post is on a Tuesday. :) 

The Friday before last (20th March) it was Oestara (more commonly known as Ostara) aka the Spring Equinox. I usually celebrate by baking. The past couple of years I made carrot cake cupcakes.

This year I baked chocolate carrot cupcakes. The recipe is from Mix and Match Mama: https://mixandmatchmama.com/2016/02/chocolate-carrot-cupcakes/ 

They were nice. Chocolate cake is one of my favourite type of cakes, so it was good to have chocolate carrot cakes! They have a cream cheese frosting and I put Cadbury Mini Eggs on top to fit the Oestara theme. Here's a pic:  

 

Imbolg 2026

Last Monday (2nd February) I celebrated Imbolg (more commonly known as Imbolc). I normally celebrate on the 2nd but some people celebrate on 1st Feb (or from sundown on the 1st to sundown on the 2nd). And others may hold their celebrations on 31st January.

I usually make pancakes for this sabbat. They are a good fit for Imbolg. This year I made oatmeal pancakes (American style) again, using this recipe from Don't Waste the Crumbs: https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/oatmeal-pancakes/

I really had trouble getting the mix to come together this year! It was similar last year but I did get a couple more solid pancakes then. I was happiest with the pancakes the first year I made them (2021) and on Imbolg 2022.

They tasted quite nice though, except I put too much cinnamon in the mix! I used little pots of instant oatmeal like other years rather than buying a bag of porridge oats and plain flour instead of oat flour. Maybe they'd hold better with oat flour but I don't have a mixer or blender, so it would be difficult to make.

I had them with butter and golden syrup. Here's a pic:

Doesn't look very neat but never mind! lol.

Christmas Spiced Gingerbread Cake + Autumn-Winter Update (2025)

I normally post on Sundays or Mondays but didn't manage to get this finished yesterday, so am posting today instead. :)

As with previous years, I'm doing a double post, sharing what I baked for Christmas and my last quarterly update of the year (autumn-winter). (Last year I didn't bake anything for Christmas, so shared what I baked for New Year instead). Scroll down if you just want to read the update. :)

 

Christmas Spiced Gingerbread Cake

For Christmas (2025) I baked a spiced gingerbread cake. The recipe is from Sally's Baking Addiction: https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/gingerbread-cake-recipe/

It can be made as a single layer cake or a 3 layer cake and in various sizes. I made the single version. I used treacle instead of molasses, which I often do with ginger things, since it's more accessible in the UK. I also used mixed spice instead of cloves because I didn't have any and mixed spice has cloves in it.

The recipe has a cream cheese frosting which is one of my favourite icings/frostings, especially with ginger cakes! This frosting has spices in it, so I used ginger, cinnamon and mixed spice again. 

The cake was quite nice. It goes well with evaporated milk too. One of the suggestions for decorating it is festive Christmas sprinkles. I couldn't get any red and green sprinkles, so I used some multicoloured ones instead. Here's a pic:  

Yule 2025

I normally post on Sundays or Mondays but didn't manage to get this finished yesterday. So I'm posting on a Tuesday instead. :)

The Sunday before last (21st December) it was Yule/the Winter Solstice. I celebrated by having a chocolate Yule log from Tesco, a Finest red velvet white chocolate one this year, for a change. While I occasionally make my own, I most often buy them, especially since it's so close to Christmas!

The Yule log was quite nice and it was good to have red velvet, since I like the cake. Here's a pic:

 

Hallowe'en/Samhain 2025

The Friday before last (31st October) it was Hallowe'en and Samhain. I celebrated by carving a pumpkin, putting up some decorations and making some food and drink. I baked gingerbread skeletons, made some potato salad based on a recipe from the book The Kitchen Witch by Soraya and my favourite Demon's Blood drink (ginger beer mixed with apple juice and orange juice, and dyed green). The drink recipe is from Kate West's book The Real Witches' Kitchen.

Here's a picture of the pumpkin: 

Summer-Autumn Update (2025) + Happy Samhain/Hallowe'en!

I normally post on Sundays or Mondays but didn't manage to get this post finished yesterday, so it's on a Tuesday instead. :) 

 

We're now in October, so it's time for my summer-autumn update! :) You can see my previous updates for 2025 below: 

Winter-Spring Update (2025):  https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2025/04/winter-spring-update-2025-easter-baking.html

Spring-Summer Update (2025): https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2025/07/spring-summer-update-2025.html

Plus, Samhain/Hallowe'en is coming up), so I've included a section with inspiration for celebrating (scroll down to the bottom of the post).

In mid-July, I went to Yallabina, a belly dance event that I also went to last year. It was at a different venue this time (still in Brighton). Afterwards I got a mocha frappe from Hellenic Bakery, which I really liked. 

In late July, I met up with my belly dance friends to celebrate a birthday. We went to a pub in Woodingdean (Brighton). It was nice to see them all after a while. 

Then at the beginning of August, I celebrated Lammas. You can see my post about it here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2025/08/lammas-2025.html

I also met up with family members that month, who were visiting the UK. It was the first time I'd ever met them, so it was good. We had lunch in Harry Ramsden's (fish and chips restaurant in Brighton), then went on the pier. I've had takeaway from Harry Ramsden's but hadn't eaten in the restaurant before and I also hadn't been on the pier in years, so it made a change!

I shared a couple of pictures from that day in my Late Summer Photos + Happy Madron/Autumn! post, which you can see here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2025/09/late-summer-photos-happy-madronautumn.html

Here's a pic of my meal at Harry Ramsden's:

 

Madron 2025

Two weeks ago (Monday 22nd September) it was Madron, also known as Mabon/the Autumn Equinox. I normally bake for this sabbat as my main celebration. For the past few years I've made some form of ginger cake (although in 2022 I baked pumpkin spice bars) but this year I decided to go for something differrent, a buttermilk spice cake. The recipe is from Mix and Match Mama: https://mixandmatchmama.com/2018/09/buttermilk-spice-cake/

I thought it fit the theme because it has spices in (also any type of baked goods are suitable for Madron because it's a harvest festival). I didn't use nutmeg because I didn't have any and don't use it much, but I used some mixed spice instead. 

The cake was quite nice. I liked the cream cheese frosting too. (I like it in general but don't normally put maple syrup in it). You can bake it as a sheet cake or a layer cake and I chose to do a sheet cake. Here's a pic: 

Late Summer Photos + Happy Madron/Autumn!

Back in 2019, I wrote a post called Summer Photos + Preparing for Autumn, where I shared some pictures from the summer and also wrote about getting ready for the new season. You can see it here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2019/09/summer-photos-preparing-for-autumn.html

This year, I thought I'd something similar, but since Madron aka Mabon/the Autumn Equinox is tomorrow (Monday 22nd September), I'm doing a combined post with some photos from my summer and some inspiration for celebrating Madron and the autumn season. :)

 

Late Summer Photos 

First up, here are some pics from the end of summer. 

Here are some photos I took when I met up with some family members in Brighton in August:

View from Brighton Palace Pier.

Lammas 2025

The Friday before last it was Lammas (1st August). Although some people may celebrate on 31st July or 2nd August. My usual celebration for this sabbat is baking. This year I made gingerbread and also bread (using a mix).

The gingerbread recipe is the BBC Good Food one that I've used for the past several years: https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/gingerbread_men_99096

This Lammas I made standard "men" shapes and a couple of other ones. Last year I used ready made icing but this year I made up my own again (icing sugar mixed with water). I iced some of them completely. lol. Here's a pic: 

 

Summer Salads + Happy Lammas!

Back in April, I wrote a post sharing some salads to make during mid-late spring. I also did two posts last year featuring salads to make for the seasonal festivals of Beltane and Litha (and summer in general). 

The Spring Salads post was also a double post for this year's Beltane, sharing some ideas for celebrating. You can see it here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2025/04/spring-salads-happy-beltane.html

 

Since we're now in summer, I'm sharing some more salads to make during the rest of the season. Plus, Lammas is coming up this week (Friday 1st August or around the 1st, depending on when you celebrate). So, while I'm no longer writing more in-depth posts with ideas for celebrating the sabbats, I thought I'd include a few links with some info and inspiration (like the Spring Salads + Happy Beltane! post).

 

Summer Salads

Spring-Summer Update (2025)

We've just over halfway through the year, so it's time for my 2nd quarterly update (spring-summer) of 2025! You can see my winter-spring update here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2025/04/winter-spring-update-2025-easter-baking.html

 

Easter was later this year (Easter Sunday was 20th April). I made a Birdies Perch Malteser slice with Cadbury's mini eggs on top and also got a couple of chocolate eggs, lol. I didn't have a big meal this year due to personal circumstances.  

At the beginning of May I celebrated Beltane. You can see my post about it here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2025/05/beltane-2025.html  

In mid-May I went to the park. As I mentioned in my May Gratitude List on on my self-help/spiritual blog Falling Petals (I post monthly gratitude lists there), I was feeling down and wanted to do something to feel better. After I read an email from Diana of The Chic Life about making a Joy List and doing what brings you joy, I decided I'd like to go to the park around sunset. I also went to Burger King and got a double bacon cheeseburger, latte and a Coke.

I shared a picture in my Gratitude List post but here are a couple more photos: 

View from by Hove Park.

Litha 2025

The Saturday before last it was Litha aka Midsummer/the Summer Solstice (21st June). (Or Sunday 20th depending on your timezone). My usual celebration for this sabbat is making salad and lemonade.

This year I made tomato and onion salad again and "Hello Kitty lemonade" (the recipe is from a Hello Kitty book). I most often use a salad recipe from The Kitchen Witch book by Soraya, but I've lost the book at the moment! I basically remember the recipe anyway, but I also based it on this Italian tomato and onion salad one from This Italian Kitchen: https://thisitaliankitchen.com/italian-tomato-onion-salad/

I came across the recipe a couple of years ago and linked to it in past posts (including last year's Salads for Litha/Summer + Extra Ideas! post. It was the first time I'd made it though.

The salad was quite nice. It's pretty similar to The Kitchen Witch one, except for a couple of things. It uses red onion but I've sometimes made my Litha salad with red onion anyway, which makes it a bit like kachumbari which I like to make for Beltane. Also it requires balsamic vinegar but I didn't have that, so I used lemon juice instead (I think my normal recipe has lemon juice in). And if I don't have olive oil (which I didn't this time) I use vegetable oil instead.

I had it for lunch with a Fitzgeralds bake at home sourdough baguette, sea salt and vinegar crisps, gucamole, chicken fillets and roasted garlic and aioli potato salad. Also the lemonade. Here are a couple of pics:

 

Food

Beltane 2025

Last Thursday (1st May) it was Beltane. (Some people celebrate from sundown on 30th April to sundown on 1st May.) As I mentioned in my Spring Salads + Happy Beltane! post, I normally make salads for this sabbat. 

One of my favourites in recent years is kachumbari (Kenyan/East African tomato and onion salad) and I made that again this Beltane. The recipe is from Precious Core: https://www.preciouscore.com/kachumbari/ 

I had it for my lunch, with some chicken fillets, tortilla chips and guacamole. (Some years I make my own guacamole but lately I've been buying it, lol.) I also had some leftover smashed potato salad that I'd made for my tea (dinner) the night before.

Here's a pic:

Spring Salads + Happy Beltane!

Last spring and summer I wrote two posts featuring salads to make for the seasonal festivals of Beltane and Litha/the Summer Solstice (plus summer in general). You can see them here: 

Salads for Beltane + Extra Ideas!: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2024/04/salads-for-beltane-extra-ideas.html 

Salads for Litha + Extra Ideas!: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2024/06/salads-for-litha-extra-ideas.html

 

While I'm no longer writing more in-depth posts with ideas for celebrating the sabbats, I am occasionally doing new posts with ideas if I feel inspired to. I enjoyed writing the Beltane and Litha posts last year (which also included some ideas for celebrating), so I thought this year I would share some more salads to make during mid-late spring.

Also, Beltane is coming up this week, it's on Thursday 1st May, or Wednesday 30th April, depending on when you celebrate (it traditionally goes from sundown to sundown). So I've included a few links with some more info and inspiration. :)

 

Spring Salads 

 

First up, here are some salads for spring:  

Smokey deli style chicken salad: https://www.ahealthysliceoflife.com/smoky-deli-style-chicken-salad/ 

Grilled chicken chopped kale salad with honey dill vinaigrette: https://simplytaralynn.com/2022/07/12/grilled-chicken-chopped-kale-salad-honey-dill-vinaigrette/

Chicken salad: https://simplytaralynn.com/2025/03/04/the-easiest-chicken-salad-recipe-i-eat-every-day/ 

Mediterranean tuna salad: https://natalie-mason.com/mediterranean-tuna-salad/

Italian chopped salad: https://www.preciouscore.com/italian-chopped-salad/ 

Easy edamame salad: https://plantbasedonabudget.com/easy-edamame-salad/ 

Black bean and brown rice salad: https://www.pbfingers.com/black-bean-and-brown-rice-salad/

If you're vegetarian but still want something similar to chicken salad, Brittany from A Healthy Slice of Life (who has a recipe for smokey deli style chicken salad; linked above) also a classic chickpea "chicken" salad recipe, as an alternative: https://www.ahealthysliceoflife.com/classic-chickpea-chicken-salad/

Winter-Spring Update (2025) + Easter Baking

We've just passed the first quarter of the year, so it's time for my first update of 2025! Also, since Easter is coming up next weekend, I've added a section with some Easter recipes (scroll down for that). :)

Winter-Spring Update (2025)

For the past few years I've written quarterly updates (from "season to season"). I started out writing monthly updates in 2019 and then "two monthly" (two months at a time) ones in 2020, but found that quarterly was better for me. So I'm going to carry that on in 2025. :)

You can see my autumn-winter 2024 update here if you like: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2025/01/new-year-gingerbread-cookies-autumn.html

I didn't do much during January really. I had a bit of a stressful start to the year, due to personal circumstances. 

At the beginning of February I celebrated Imbolg. You can see my post about it here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2025/02/imbolg-2025.html

Also during February, I went to Popeyes and got some food. Similarly to Slim Chickens, I'd had milkshakes from there before but not a meal. I tried Slim Chickens' food for the first time in December. I like them both, but like Popeyes' chicken a bit more and  prefer Slim Chickens' milkshakes! 

At the beginning of March I celebrated my birthday. I got a few presents and had a red velvet cake from Marks & Spencer (a small one because they didn't have the bigger one I usually get) and some food at home. I also got takeaway from Nando's. 

In mid-late March it was Ostara/Ostara aka the Spring Equinox. You can read my post about my celebration here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2025/03/oestara-2025.html

Later in March I met up with my dance friends at a pub in Hangleton (Hove). It was nice to see them.

While I'm not currently going on regular park walks , I went to the park a few times during February and March. I had planned to go to Hove Park for Oestara but ended up going to a nearer one instead, because it was quite a busy day. However, I went to Hove a couple of weeks later, around sunset. I also went to Burger King and got a double bacon cheeseburger, a mocha latte and a Coke, then went and sat in the park for a bit.

Here are a couple of photos:

View from by Hove Park.