Alchemists and Abundance
A visit to an NYC shop and a recipe to manifest abundance.
Hello, wonderful witches!
Do any of you remember the Garbage Pail Kids? It was one of my favorite parts of my childhood. They were sticker trading cards with portraits of really disgusting cartoonish characters on them, covered in garbage, slime, snot, vomit, and more. They all had hilarious names, like Bad Breath Seth, Jay Decay, and Oozy Suzy, and the drawings matched their names.
WELL, let me tell you of the glorious new tarot deck I have: The Garbage Pail Kids Tarot. Every card has a Garbage-Pail-esque illustration, and the readings are scarily accurate. Here’s a pic of one of my favorite cards.
Isn’t it so grossly great?
Another fun note! I did an interview today about tyromancy, or the art of fortune telling with cheese. It’s been a while since I did that workshop, so please let me know if any of you are interested in doing another one! For those of you who weren’t here yet, it’s a fun presentation about the history of cheese in magic and the history of tyromancy, then everyone on the Zoom shows a piece of cheese and we all take turns divining from it.
Alright, onto today’s issue! We’ve got two articles: one about a new alchemy shop in New York City, and one with a recipe for an abundance bowl. Enjoy!
The Alchemist’s Kitchen
By Amber Gibson
A former parfumerie in SoHo has transformed into a healthy haven for matcha lattes, mushroom mochas, kava chocolate, vegan confections, and state-changing botanical elixirs. The Alchemist’s Kitchen has evolved from its genesis as a destination for CBD to a broader exploration of the medicinal power of plants, all in the spirit of the green witch.
Maria Teresa Valdez is the green witch behind refreshments like rose geranium sparkling water paired with vegan and gluten-free banana bread studded with crunchy millet. Valdez immigrated from the Philippines to Florida in 1994 with dreams of becoming an astronaut. She loves science fiction and worked for 18 years at a medical device company before joining forces with Lou Sagar to develop the menu and curate the experience at The Alchemist’s Kitchen.
“We are caretakers of the earth, not conquerors,” she says. “We celebrate the power of plants. We celebrate the witch. They have been maligned by Disney for the longest time but the witch is the one who is connecting to the planet, to the trees, flowers, animals, and crystals.” Valdez hopes to help people get in touch with their intuition through plants and state-changing elixirs. She believes that Americans lost our connection with the healing power of plants when the American Medical Association was founded, but is hopeful that a new generation is interested in rediscovering the traditions of our ancestors.
First-time visitors should take a seat at the bar and sample a plant alchemy flight, a series of four custom blends designed to enhance immunity, boost brain power, unleash joy, and bolster the spirit. Blue lotus, nettle, lemon balm, hibiscus, and elderberry are just a few of the potent plants that make appearances in these concoctions. The apothecary-inspired retail space also hosts oracle readings, new moon and full moon ceremonies, herbalist classes, and divination workshops.
Even if you just have a moment to stop by while shopping in Soho, try the iced matcha latte with housemade cashew mylk.
“The act of making your own food or your own mylk is an activist step,” Valdez says. “You’re not relying on anyone else. When you start activating all of your senses and all of your will, educating yourself on how to make your own food, you’re learning what you’re capable of. We hope those are the inspirations that people will take away from coming into The Alchemist's Kitchen.”
Visit The Alchemist’s Kitchen at 119 Crosby St in New York City.
Amber Gibson covers travel, food, wine, and wellness for Travel + Leisure, Conde Nast Traveller, Departures, NBC, Forbes, USA Today, and Artful Living. Follow her adventures @amberyv on Instagram.
Manifesting Abundance in a Bowl
By Katiee McKinstry
The terms “abundance” and “manifesting” are thrown around often, but have you ever stopped to think about new ways you could start creating abundance in your life? Often, we don’t think about food as the target for manifesting, but each ingredient you use can help you to cast spells in ways you might not be able to with other tools.
Enter: the abundance bowl.
With each ingredient, you can set an intention. When you put them all together to finally eat, you can even chew with your intention. Digesting your food is key to your health and wellbeing, but also to your spell work. If you are looking to make your life more abundant, think about what you want to create. What in your life is lacking? How can you change your negative thoughts (scarcity) into positive ones (abundance)? Use the time you spend eating as a meditative practice, and reflect on what you are trying to manifest into your life.
As you place each ingredient into your abundance bowl, set your intention. As your bowl becomes abundant, so will you. Make sure to have a drink with you as well, to help stay hydrated and create a positive headspace. When manifesting abundance, it is important that you believe it is already yours. Any way you can create positivity, do it.
Abundance Bowl for Manifestation
Finally! Here is everything you need for your abundance bowl, what each ingredient does, and how to utilize them all to manifest your dreams.
Chickpeas (raw) — You can grab chickpeas from a can and dump them into your bowl. Chickpeas are a great source of protein and they are good for your heart, manifesting strength and opening your heart to your true desires.
Cherry Tomatoes (raw) — Cherry tomatoes help you to feel more grounded, activating your root chakra. In doing so, you set a foundation for abundance to enter your life.
Chopped Carrots (raw) — Carrots help you to see, it’s true! You want to have a clear vision when manifesting exactly what you want. Don’t be scared to get too specific.
Rice (your choice here, but brown tastes the best!) and Quinoa — Rice and quinoa add some grain and protein to your bowl. This helps you to gain clarity on where in your life you need abundance to flow.
Romaine Lettuce or Spring Mix — Throw in some greens to strengthen your mind, body, and soul. Having the strength to create radical change in your life is key for manifesting!
Balsamic Vinaigrette and Olive Oil — Throw these dressings on top of your bowl, mostly for taste, but also because they are good for your organs. Healing your body will help you to stay positive, accepting that what you want is already yours.
Happy manifesting!
Katiee McKinstry is a witchy writer based outside Atlanta, Georgia. She writes about witchcraft, astrology, gaming, pop culture, and more. Her biggest passion is music and concerts, and she has a rabbit named Florence and a cat named Dexter. Follow her on all socials @rosecafletic.
In the next issue…
The next newsletter will have… well, I’m not sure yet. We’ll find out together!
See you then!
Love this. Cooking and baking with intention is what I do as well. It makes a difference.