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✨ The Seasoned Witch: Exploring the Magical Kitchen of A.L. Childers — Cookbooks for the Soul, the Hearth, and the Wheel of the Year

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🔮 Where the Hearth Becomes an Altar and Every Spoon Is a Wand

Step into the glowing world of A.L. Childers, author of the beloved Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews series — where kitchen witchery, seasonal living, and pagan cookbooks meet heart, heritage, and a touch of holiday magic.

Each of A.L. Childers’ modern witch books blends clean eating pagan recipes, spiritual cooking, and ancestral kitchen wisdom to create something that’s part cookbook, part grimoire, and all soul. Whether you’re brewing Samhain recipes, crafting Yuletide rituals, or exploring winter solstice cooking, her books help you reconnect with the seasonal wheel of the year—one simmering pot at a time.

🍲 1. Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews: Holiday Magic

Paperback – October 2, 2025

The winter months are a sacred time for rest, reflection, and ritual. In Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews: Holiday Magic, A.L. Childers invites you to rediscover the warmth of the hearth and the traditions of your ancestors.

🌿 Inside, you’ll find:
• 75 clean, seasonal recipes for stews, breads, teas, and festive drinks
• Hearth blessings and candlelight rituals for protection and peace
• Folklore and history from Samhain to Yule celebrations
• Kitchen witch magic and simple holiday habits

✨ Best for: Kitchen witches, clean eating enthusiasts, folklore lovers, and spiritual home cooks.
📖 Available on Amazon → Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews: Holiday Magic

🕯 2. The Witch’s Almanac Cookbook (2026 Edition): Seasonal Recipes, Spells, Rituals & Kitchen Magic

More than a cookbook—it’s a year-long spellbook for the soul. Each chapter aligns with the seasonal wheel of the year, offering witchy recipes, mindful eating rituals, and elemental insight for each Sabbath.

🌕 Highlights:
• Seasonal living recipes for Imbolc, Beltane, Lammas & Yule
• Lunar and elemental guidance for spiritual cooking
• Reflection pages to transform each meal into ritual

✨ Try: Honeyed Oat Cakes for Mabon – baked for balance and gratitude.
📖 Available on Amazon → The Witch’s Almanac Cookbook (2026 Edition)

🔥 3. Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews: A Witchy Crockpot Cookbook

Nourishing Recipes, Magical Rituals, and Slow-Cooked Spells for Body, Spirit & Home

Every crockpot is a cauldron, and every recipe a spell.
This book turns everyday slow-cooking into spiritual practice—perfect for witches who find magic in routine.

🌿 Inside, discover:
• 70+ slow cooker magic recipes for body and soul
• Ancestral kitchen wisdom and herbal healing insight
• Prayers, chants, and intentional cooking rituals
• Folklore and blessings for each moon phase

✨ Try: Moonlight Lentil Stew — a comforting blend to restore balance and clarity.
📖 Available on Amazon → Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews: A Witchy Crockpot Cookbook

🌕 Why Readers Love These Modern Witch Books

Because they do more than feed you.
They remind you to pause, breathe, and treat the act of cooking as ceremony.
Each title in the collection is a gentle invitation to live with intention and to honor the earth through simple acts of care, nourishment, and gratitude.

These books are for the witch who knows her kitchen is holy ground — where Samhain recipes, Yuletide rituals, and mindful eating rituals become ways of returning home to the self.

✍️ About the Author

A.L. Childers is a multi-genre author, researcher, and storyteller whose work bridges folklore, spiritual healing, and seasonal living. Known for her rich storytelling and heartfelt tone, she invites readers to slow down and reconnect with the old ways through modern ritual and kitchen magic.

She writes for those who believe that the act of cooking can heal, that every meal is a spell, and that our ancestors still speak through the steam of a simmering pot.

Visit TheHypothyroidismChick.com

⚠️ Disclaimer

The information in these books and blogs is for educational and spiritual inspiration only.
It is not intended to diagnose or treat medical conditions and should not replace professional advice.
Use herbs safely, listen to your intuition, and practice responsibly.

✨ Add These Witchy Cookbooks to Your Collection

Because your kitchen isn’t just where meals are made — it’s where magic is remembered.

🍯 Honeyed Oat Cakes for Mabon

A simple, sacred recipe to honor gratitude, balance, and the turning of the seasonal wheel.

🌾 About the Recipe

Mabon, the Autumn Equinox, is a time of balance and thanksgiving — when light and dark are equal, and we give thanks for the harvest. These Honeyed Oat Cakes celebrate that moment with the comforting aroma of oats, cinnamon, and golden honey — humble ingredients that have nourished hearths for centuries.

Each bite is a reminder of ancestral kitchen magic — simple, real, and blessed with intention.

This recipe is featured in The Witch’s Almanac Cookbook (2026 Edition) by A.L. Childers, as part of the “Wheel of the Year” collection of seasonal recipes, rituals, and reflections.

🕯️ Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats
  • ¾ cup whole wheat flour (or gluten-free blend, if preferred)
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ½ cup unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted
  • ½ cup raw honey (plus extra for drizzling)
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • Optional: ¼ cup finely chopped nuts or dried fruit (raisins, dates, or cranberries)

🔥 Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, combine oats, flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
  3. In a smaller bowl, whisk together melted butter (or oil), honey, and vanilla until smooth.
  4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until fully combined. If the dough feels too dry, add 1–2 tablespoons of warm water.
  5. Fold in nuts or fruit if desired.
  6. Scoop tablespoons of dough onto your baking sheet and flatten slightly into small rounds.
  7. Bake for 10–12 minutes or until edges turn golden brown.
  8. Remove and allow to cool slightly. Drizzle with warm honey while whispering a blessing for gratitude and balance.

🌿 Kitchen Witchery: The Mabon Blessing Spell

Before serving, take a moment to light a candle in gold or green — colors of harvest and abundance. As you drizzle honey over your oat cakes, say aloud (or whisper softly):

“For balance, for bounty, for blessings untold,
May these cakes bring warmth as the year turns cold.
With honey of heart and oats of the land,
I give my thanks with an open hand.”

Serve these cakes with apple cider, warm tea, or mulled wine as an offering to your ancestors — or to enjoy by candlelight as the equinox sun sets.

🌕 Moonlight Lentil Stew

A soothing, slow-cooked spell for calm, clarity, and emotional renewal.

🪄 About the Recipe

The Moonlight Lentil Stew is a gentle, grounding dish created for nights when the world feels heavy and the spirit needs stillness.
This recipe, featured in Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews: A Witchy Crockpot Cookbook by A.L. Childers, honors the moon’s tranquil rhythm — slow, reflective, and full of wisdom.

Cooked overnight or during the waxing moon, this dish gathers the magic of herbs and roots that cleanse emotional energy, balance hormones, and encourage peace after emotional storms.

It’s more than a meal — it’s moonlight in a bowl.

🌿 Ingredients

  • 1 cup dried lentils (green or brown, rinsed)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil or coconut oil
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
  • 2 celery stalks, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon cracked black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon thyme (dried or fresh sprigs)
  • 4 cups vegetable broth or bone broth
  • 1 cup coconut milk (unsweetened)
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • Optional: 1 cup chopped spinach or kale (added at the end)
  • Optional garnish: fresh parsley or a swirl of yogurt

🔥 Crockpot (Cauldron) Directions

  1. In a small skillet, sauté onion, carrots, celery, and garlic in oil until softened. This “awakens” the flavors.
  2. Add all ingredients (except coconut milk and lemon juice) into your crockpot.
  3. Stir clockwise — three full turns — while repeating softly: “By moon’s soft light and gentle art,
    Peace descend upon my heart.”
  4. Cover and cook on low for 6–8 hours or high for 3–4 hours.
  5. Before serving, stir in the coconut milk and lemon juice. Add spinach or kale, if desired, and let it wilt in the residual heat.
  6. Taste, adjust seasoning, and serve under candlelight or by a window where the moon is visible.

🌙 Kitchen Witchery Ritual

Prepare this stew during a waxing or full moon to draw in clarity, serenity, and inner strength.
As it simmers, visualize the lentils absorbing lunar light — tiny mirrors reflecting calm into every cell of your being.

When you lift the lid, breathe in the steam and whisper:

“I am centered, I am still.
I receive what the moon reveals.”

Eat slowly, mindfully, letting the flavors remind you of the simple alchemy between earth, water, and intention.

🌾 Magical Correspondences

Step into the world of A.L. Childers, author of Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews: Holiday Magic, The Witch’s Almanac Cookbook (2026), and A Witchy Crockpot Cookbook. Discover the art of kitchen witchery, clean eating pagan recipes, Yuletide rituals, and ancestral kitchen magic through her collection of modern witch books designed for soulful, seasonal living.

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🌸 From Thyroid Healing to Spiritual Nourishment: How Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews Transforms Hyothyroidism Care Through Clean Eating & Witchy Wisdom

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By A.L. Childers | September 30, 2025


Discover how Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews: A Witchy Crockpot Cookbook by A.L. Childers supports hypothyroidism and Hashimoto’s through clean eating, thyroid-friendly recipes, and spiritual cleansing rituals that nurture body, mind, and spirit.

🧠✨ When Food Becomes Medicine and Magic

For those living with hypothyroidism or Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, every meal matters. What you put into your body directly affects your energy, hormones, digestion, and mood. But what if healing your thyroid wasn’t just about what’s on the plate — what if it was also about the energy, intention, and history behind the food?

That’s the heart of my new book, Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews: A Witchy Crockpot Cookbook. This isn’t just another clean eating guide. It’s a crockpot grimoire — a bridge between ancestral healing recipes, modern thyroid care, and spiritual nourishment.

🥄🌿 Thyroid-Friendly, Soul-Healing Recipes

Many traditional cookbooks overlook the unique dietary needs of those with Hashimoto’s or autoimmune thyroid disease. I wrote this book to fill that gap. Inside, you’ll find more than 70 recipes crafted to support clean eating and gentle detoxification — all while honoring the spiritual and historical roots of food.

Some featured recipes include:

  • 🫕 Bone Broth of Blessings — A slow-cooked ancestral broth infused with mineral-rich herbs to soothe the gut and support immune function.
  • 🌾 Root & Herb Healing Stew — A grounding recipe that stabilizes blood sugar and gently supports adrenal health, crucial for those with thyroid disorders.
  • 🍎 Apple & Cinnamon Cleansing Brew — A simmer pot recipe designed to reduce inflammation while cleansing the home’s energy.
  • 🧄 Garlic & Turmeric Immunity Cauldron — A powerful anti-inflammatory stew perfect for immune system balance.
  • 🍋 Lemon Balm Moon Brew — A calming tea-like infusion to ease anxiety, promote better sleep, and nurture the nervous system.

Each recipe is intentionally free from common thyroid triggers like refined sugars, gluten, and heavily processed ingredients. Instead, the focus is on whole foods, seasonal herbs, and time-honored cooking techniques that heal from the inside out.

🧘‍♀️✨ Healing Beyond the Physical: Clean Eating Meets Spiritual Cleansing

Thyroid disease doesn’t just affect the body — it impacts your mind, emotions, and spirit. That’s why Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews doesn’t stop at clean recipes. Each section is paired with:

  • 🌙 Mindful stirring rituals to infuse meals with intention.
  • 🔥 Seasonal correspondences to align your cooking with the natural rhythms of the Earth.
  • 🧼 Spiritual cleansing practices like simmer pots, herb bundles, and moon brews to clear stagnant energy in your home.
  • 🕯 Ancestral storytelling that connects you back to the women and healers who cooked before us.

When you bring together clean eating, thyroid support, and witchy kitchen wisdom, something beautiful happens: your body begins to heal, your mind finds clarity, and your spirit remembers its power.

🌟 Why This Book Is a Must-Have for Those with Hypothyroidism or Hashimoto’s

✅ Thyroid-Friendly Recipes — Designed with anti-inflammatory, gut-healing ingredients.
🌿 Holistic Healing Approach — Supports mind, body, and spirit simultaneously.
🔥 Witchy Wisdom Meets Modern Science — Blends herbal traditions, spiritual rituals, and clean nutritional practices.
📚 Easy Crockpot Methods — Perfect for those who need nourishing meals without hours of kitchen time.
✨ Unique in Its Field — There’s no other cookbook that combines Hashimoto’s-friendly clean eating with magical kitchen rituals quite like this.

📚 Explore More from A.L. Childers

I’ve always believed that healing is not one-dimensional. My books weave together health, spirituality, magic, and hidden history to empower readers to live fully and consciously.

Other titles include:

  • 🌿 Roots to Health — How I healed my thyroid and cleared my arteries naturally.
  • ✨ Principles and Symbols — A journey through spiritual truths and hidden wisdom.
  • 🌍 The Hidden Empire: A Journey Through Millennia of Oligarchic Rule — Revealing the patterns of power throughout history.
  • 🔮 The Forbidden Gospel of John — Lost spiritual teachings brought to light.

Each book explores a different thread of the tapestry — health, history, spirit, and magic — designed to awaken, heal, and empower.

🧠 1. Mind — Lemon Balm & Lavender “Clarity Cauldron” Brew

For mental calm, focus, and emotional balance

Ingredients:

  • 6 cups filtered water
  • 1 tbsp dried lemon balm (calming, nervine, supports thyroid function)
  • 1 tsp lavender buds (reduces anxiety, soothes nervous system)
  • 1 small cinnamon stick (improves circulation and focus)
  • 1 tbsp raw honey (added after cooking — for gentle sweetness and antimicrobial properties)
  • Optional: a slice of lemon or orange for brightness

Instructions:

  1. Add water, lemon balm, lavender, and cinnamon stick to your crockpot.
  2. Set on LOW and let it gently infuse for 2–3 hours.
  3. Strain and stir in honey with intention — visualizing clarity washing through your thoughts like sunlight.
  4. Sip slowly during moments of overwhelm, meditation, or journaling.

Why it works for the Mind:

  • Lemon balm is known to calm overactive thoughts and support thyroid function, making it excellent for those with Hashimoto’s or anxiety.
  • Lavender reduces cortisol and promotes mental clarity.
  • The slow simmering turns your kitchen into a sanctuary, allowing your nervous system to unwind with every breath.

🪄 Witchy Tip: Stir clockwise while repeating a mental clarity affirmation, such as:

“With each sip, my mind is still, my thoughts align, and peace flows through me.”

🫕 2. Body — Garlic, Turmeric & Root Healing Stew

For physical nourishment, inflammation reduction, and grounding

Ingredients:

  • 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced (immune support & anti-inflammatory)
  • 1 tbsp fresh grated turmeric or 1 tsp powdered
  • 3 carrots, chopped
  • 2 parsnips, chopped
  • 1 medium sweet potato, cubed
  • 1 lb organic chicken thighs or plant-based protein of choice
  • 6 cups bone broth or vegetable stock
  • 1 tsp sea salt, to taste
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar (to extract nutrients from bones & roots)
  • Optional herbs: thyme, rosemary, or sage

Instructions:

  1. Place all ingredients into your crockpot.
  2. Cook on LOW for 6–8 hours or HIGH for 3–4 hours, until the meat and roots are tender and the broth is golden.
  3. Before serving, stir slowly while saying a quiet blessing of gratitude for the nourishment before you.

Why it works for the Body:

  • Garlic and turmeric are potent anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial allies, supporting immune and thyroid function.
  • Root vegetables ground the body, stabilize blood sugar, and provide steady energy—vital for those with hypothyroidism.
  • Bone broth heals the gut lining, which is crucial in autoimmune conditions like Hashimoto’s.
  • Apple cider vinegar enhances nutrient absorption and gut health.

🔥 Witchy Tip: Visualize golden light infusing the stew as it cooks. This is nourishment on a cellular and energetic level — food becoming medicine and magic.

🌿 3. Spirit — Apple & Cinnamon Simmering Brew of Blessings

For spiritual cleansing, home protection, and heart-centered rituals

Ingredients:

  • 6 cups water
  • 1–2 organic apples, sliced (symbol of knowledge, abundance & healing)
  • 2 cinnamon sticks (protection, prosperity)
  • 1 tsp whole cloves (banishing negativity)
  • Peel of 1 orange or lemon (purification)
  • Optional: sprig of rosemary or bay leaf for added spiritual potency

Instructions:

  1. Add all ingredients to your crockpot.
  2. Set on LOW with the lid off and allow it to simmer throughout the day, releasing aroma and energy into your home.
  3. As it simmers, walk through your space slowly, breathing deeply and allowing the scent to cleanse your energetic field.

Why it works for the Spirit:

  • Apples and cinnamon carry centuries of magical correspondences for abundance, love, and warmth.
  • The cloves and citrus peel purify stagnant energy, making way for fresh blessings.
  • This simmering pot is not meant to drink—it’s meant to infuse your home with spiritual intention, aligning the energy of your space with your heart and purpose.

✨ Witchy Tip: Whisper your intentions into the steam as it rises. Imagine your home wrapped in golden light and gentle protection.

📝 Disclaimer

The content in Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews is for educational and spiritual purposes and should not replace medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet, medication, or lifestyle, especially if you have thyroid disease or other medical conditions.

The author shares personal experiences and historical herbal wisdom intended to complement, not substitute, medical care.

👩‍💻 About the Author — A.L. Childers

A.L. Childers is a holistic wellness advocate, kitchen witch, and bestselling author who blends ancestral herbalism, modern health, and hidden history into transformative works. After reversing her own hypothyroidism through clean eating, herbal medicine, and spiritual practice, she dedicated her life to helping others do the same.

Her warm, grounded writing invites readers to rediscover their power — in the kitchen, in their health, and in their connection to ancient wisdom.

📅 Available Now

📖 Healing Stews & Enchanted Brews: A Witchy Crockpot Cookbook
📆 Release Date: September 26, 2025
🛒 Available in Paperback & Kindle

👉 Order Your Copy on Amazon | Join My Email List for More Clean & Magical Recipes

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A New Year’s Feast of Traditions: The Southern Story You’ve Never Heard

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The New Year’s celebration in the Carolinas isn’t just a holiday—it’s a bridge between the past and the future, connecting us to our ancestors while laying the groundwork for prosperity and joy in the year to come. It’s about more than black-eyed peas and collard greens; it’s a deeply rooted tradition steeped in history, superstition, and survival.

In my book, Unlocking Carolina’s New Year’s Day Superstitions, Traditions, and Delicious Recipes (available now on Amazon), I take readers on a journey through North and South Carolina’s most cherished traditions. But let me share a piece of that journey with you—a story that will make you see the New Year’s celebration in a whole new light.

The Legacy of James Dawkins: A Family’s Survival and Triumph

Every family has its legends, and mine begins with James Dawkins, my great-great-great-grandfather, who emigrated from Ireland to the United States just before the Great Irish Potato Famine. But James wasn’t just a farmer fleeing hunger—he was a man of conviction. During the U.S.-Mexican War, he joined the Saint Patrick’s Battalion, a group of Irish immigrants who famously fought for Mexico in defiance of the mistreatment they saw mirrored in both nations.

The Battalion’s story is one of bravery and sacrifice. As their flag—boldly emblazoned with “Erin go Bragh” (Ireland Forever)—fluttered in the Battle of Churubusco, these men, including Black Americans escaping slavery, made their final stand. Though many were captured or executed, their legacy lives on in both Ireland and Mexico, with annual commemorations and statues honoring their courage.

James Dawkins survived, eventually settling in North Carolina to start a family that would become deeply woven into the fabric of Southern history. His son George W. Dawkins and grand-daughter Martha Eva Shoemake of Gibson, NC, carried forward the family legacy of resilience and adaptability—traits that continue to shape my story today.

Southern New Year’s: A Tapestry of Superstition and Lore

Growing up in Marlboro County, South Carolina, I was surrounded by the rich traditions of Southern New Year’s celebrations. “What you do on New Year’s Day, you’ll do all year,” my grandmother often reminded me. Her words weren’t just advice—they were a way of life.

From avoiding laundry (to ensure you don’t “wash away” a loved one) to eating pork (to symbolize forward progress), every action was imbued with meaning. Fireworks, loud celebrations, and communal feasts weren’t just for fun—they were meant to chase away bad luck and invite prosperity.

Black-eyed peas represented coins, collard greens symbolized wealth, and cornbread stood for gold. Together, they formed a culinary trifecta designed to ensure good fortune in the year ahead. But these dishes weren’t just superstition—they were the soul of Southern cooking, passed down through generations as a testament to survival and ingenuity.

Soul Food: A Story of Survival in Every Bite

Southern food is more than comfort—it’s resilience on a plate. My ancestors didn’t have recipe books or expensive ingredients. They cooked with what was available, turning scraps into sustenance and hardship into hospitality.

When I think of my grandmother rolling out piecrust with arthritic hands or humming gospel hymns while stirring collard greens, I’m reminded that every dish tells a story. It’s a story of making do, of wasting nothing, of feeding not just the body but the soul. It’s why I believe Southern cuisine belongs to a region, not a race or ethnicity. It’s a shared heritage that connects us all.

A Cultural Anthropologist’s Take on New Year’s

As an author, I see myself as a “cultural anthropologist,” uncovering the stories hidden in our traditions. The Southern New Year’s celebration is a rich tapestry of influences—from the Irish and African diaspora to Native American practices and European customs.

For example, the idea of eating specific foods for luck isn’t unique to the South. In Japan, soba noodles are eaten for longevity, while in Spain, people eat 12 grapes at midnight for good fortune. Yet in the Carolinas, these global traditions blend with local superstitions to create something uniquely Southern—a celebration that honors the past while looking to the future.

A New Year’s Resolution to Remember

As I reflect on these traditions, I’m reminded of the importance of connection—to our heritage, to each other, and to ourselves. My New Year’s resolution this year is to embrace my roots while sharing them with the world. Through cooking, storytelling, and writing, I hope to inspire others to celebrate their own histories and create new traditions for the future.

Order Your Slice of Southern History

If you’re ready to dive deeper into the stories, recipes, and superstitions that make Southern New Year’s so special, I invite you to order my book, Unlocking Carolina’s New Year’s Day Superstitions, Traditions, and Delicious Recipes, on Amazon. It’s more than a cookbook—it’s a celebration of culture, resilience, and the power of family traditions.

Start your New Year with a feast for the soul and a celebration that will leave you inspired all year long.

Click here to order your copy today!

Unlocking the Magic of Southern New Year’s: Superstitions, Traditions, and Stories That Bind Generations

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What if the way you spent your New Year’s Day could define the tone of your entire year? In the heart of the Carolinas, we believe just that. Southern New Year’s Day isn’t just a celebration—it’s a tapestry of superstitions, traditions, and stories that bind families together and carry the wisdom of generations forward. Whether you’re savoring black-eyed peas for luck or gathering around the dinner table to share stories of family history, every moment is steeped in meaning.

In my book, Unlocking Carolina’s New Year’s Day Superstitions, Traditions, and Delicious Recipes (available now on Amazon), I dive deep into the unique blend of culture, history, and cuisine that makes the Carolinas shine. But today, I want to take you on a journey—a personal exploration of my family’s rich legacy, the untold stories of resilience, and the flavorful traditions that have shaped my life.

A Legacy of Survival: The Dawkins Family Story

My family history reads like an epic novel, with twists and turns that take us from Ireland to Mexico and back to the Southern soil of North Carolina. My sixth-generation great-grandfather, James Dawkins, emigrated from Ireland to the United States before the Great Irish Potato Famine of 1845. His journey wasn’t just about survival—it was about taking a stand.

James Dawkins fought in the Battle of Churubusco during the U.S.-Mexican War, as part of the legendary Saint Patrick’s Battalion. This group of mostly Irish immigrants switched sides to fight for Mexico, drawn by parallels between the plight of Catholic Mexicans and their own struggles under British rule. Their defiance is commemorated in Mexico to this day, with statues of their leader, John Riley, and songs that celebrate their bravery. James survived this harrowing chapter and returned to North Carolina, where his story became part of my family’s lore—a tale of resilience and conviction.

From Laurel Hill to Marlboro County: A Southern Tradition of Connection

Fast forward to the North Carolina of the 19th and 20th centuries, where the Dawkins family flourished. My grandmother, Martha Eva Shoemake, was the matriarch who connected us all. Born in Scotland County in 1921, she embodied the spirit of Southern hospitality, her kitchen a haven of love and warmth.

I still remember the squeaky screen door announcing my arrival on Sunday afternoons after church. The smell of collard greens simmering, cornbread baking, and her soulful humming filled the air. My grandmother didn’t just cook food—she cooked memories. Each bite was a lesson in heritage, in making the most of what you had, and in sharing love through nourishment.

Why Southern Food Is a Story of Survival

Southern cooking isn’t just about flavor—it’s about ingenuity and resilience. Our ancestors made do with what they had, turning humble ingredients into soul-stirring meals. From scraps to sustenance, every dish tells a story.

Black-eyed peas symbolize prosperity, while collard greens represent wealth. Pork, a traditional New Year’s Day staple, signifies progress, as pigs root forward when they eat. In my book, I share not only these delicious recipes but also the cultural and historical significance behind them. These aren’t just dishes—they’re time capsules of our collective Southern identity.

Superstitions That Shape the Year

“Whatever you do on New Year’s Day, you’ll do all year long.” This saying has been passed down in my family like gospel truth. New Year’s superstitions in the South aren’t just quaint—they’re a roadmap for a prosperous future. From avoiding laundry (lest you “wash someone out” of your life) to ensuring the first guest of the year is a man (for good luck), these traditions are woven into the fabric of Southern life.

Why This Book Is a Must-Read

If you’ve ever longed to reconnect with the past or create meaningful traditions for the future, Unlocking Carolina’s New Year’s Day Superstitions, Traditions, and Delicious Recipes is your guide. With every page, you’ll discover the stories, rituals, and recipes that make New Year’s in the Carolinas unforgettable.

This isn’t just a cookbook—it’s a celebration of culture, a love letter to Southern resilience, and an invitation to carry these traditions forward. Whether you’re Southern by birth or simply by heart, this book will inspire you to embrace the joy of New Year’s Day in a whole new way.

Grab Your Copy Today!

Don’t let another New Year’s Day pass without embracing the magic of the South. Order your copy of Unlocking Carolina’s New Year’s Day Superstitions, Traditions, and Delicious Recipes on Amazon and step into a world of flavor, history, and heart. Make this New Year a celebration to remember—and pass these cherished traditions on to those you love.

Click here to order your copy now and start your journey into the soul of Southern New Year’s!

Unlocking Carolina’s New Year’s Day: Superstitions, Traditions, and Delicious Recipes