Pantries were once common to every home. Today, most of us fill cupboards with staples and canned foods. The pantry is ruled by the element of earth and the moon; because it is a container that houses food, it’s intimately linked with the Mother Goddess. For our purposes, your kitchen cabinets constitute a pantry. The magical cook should keep a stock of basic culinary ingredients: salt; sugar(if you use it); honey; maple syrup; herbs and spices; whole grains; flours of all types; cornmeal; vinegar; and vegetable oils and other similar foods, stored in airtight containers. As a place where food is stored, the pantry should be protected. A rope of braided garlic or chilli peppers hung in or on the pantry will serve it well. While hanging the rope, visualize the vegetable’s forceful energies driving away anything that would contaminate the food.
