Slow Cooker Chili for Mabon

 

With Mabon upons us, thoughts turn to goat’s horn bearing fruit, grain and other harvesty goodness. No..I did not eat the funny mushrooms. I am referring to the Cornucopia also called the horn of plenty. It is a symbol of abundance and good fortune. It is commonly pictured as a large horn-shaped basket overflowing with the fruits of the harvest such as grains, fruits, vegetables and nuts. Small wonder it is adorning American tables at Thanksgiving and various other harvest related celebrations.

A possible origin for the cornucopia was in ancient Greece. When Zeus was a baby, his mother hid him away from Cronus who had the bad habit of eating his kids. Zeus was nursemaided by a number of nymphs and a goat known as Amaltheia who fed him on her milk. During a bit of roughhousing with his nanny (in more ways than one), Zeus is said to have broken off one of her horns by accident. The horn was then blessed with the power to provide unending nourishment, just as Amaltheia nourished her divine infant charge.

Another possible orgin stems from another Greek myth. Heracles is said to also have created this horn of plenty. It happened when he was wrestling the river god Achelous and ripped off one of his horns (A rowdy lot those Greeks). Grecian river gods were occasionally shown to have horns.

The cornucopia has wide associations with various Greek and Roman deities who are associated with the harvest, spiritual abundance and physical wealth. A few examples are Gaia, Plutus, Dionysus, Fortuna, Hades and Demeter. The cornucopia bears similarities to the magical cauldron owned by the Dagda. He is an important god in Irish mythology and one of the Tuatha Dé Danann. It is said he owned a cauldron that never ran empty.

Here is a chilli one can make in their slow cooker (electrical cauldron!) filled with things you might find in a cornucopia we have beans for good luck and longevity, we have tomatoes for prosperity and protection, onions for cleansing and health, garlic for protection and purification, corn for fertility and abundance, bell pepper for strength, prosperity and growth. Chili powder, paprika, black pepper, onion and garlic powders are there to protect from ill health, hexes and bad luck. Cocoa, honey and salt for wealth and prosperity. Cumin to draw and enhance love, wealth and protection and coriander for prosperity and protection. The deep orange-red colour is one of the colours associated with Mabon as well. It is also real easy to make!

 

Cornucopia Chilli

 

Ingredients:
2 pounds lean ground beef (ground turkey also works real well) (80% lean)
1 can (16 ounces) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (16 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
1-3/4 cups frozen corn
2 cans (14-1/2 ounces each) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (4 ounces) tomato paste
4 cups beef or chicken broth
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 medium yellow onions, chopped
1 large green bell pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons chili powder
2-1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1-1/2 teaspoons ground pepper
1-1/2 teaspoons ground garlic
1 teaspoon ground onion
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

 

Instructions:

Brown meat in a skillet till no longer pink and drain off fat.

Transfer to a 6-qt. Crock-pot.

Add the rest of the ingredients.

Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or 4-5 hours on high.

Add frozen corn a half hour before serving

(To make vegetarian, replace the meat broth with vegetable broth, remove the meat and add 1 can (16 ounces) pinto beans at the start of cooking).

 

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About the Author:

Skarlett

I’ve been a practicing pagan and witch for over 20 years. I was raised Catholic (in such that my parents sent me to Catholic school as they believed it would give me a better education..my parents were agnostic at best) and got over it quickly enough. It never touched me, but the school library had really good books on mythology and divination, so there was that. I began my path at the age of 14 after seeing The Occult Explosion on late night TV and then raiding the occult section at B Daltons with a pocketful of babysitting money and allowance.

Paganism made sense to me. I started out Wiccan as that was what was available on the shelves and grew from there. At 16 I was handed a copy of the Principia Discordia and well…I added chaos magic to the mix. I was a solitary who occasionally attended discussion groups and rituals when living in Chicago. I then moved to Ohio (Gods know why). Through a series of interesting coincidences I ended up with Three Cranes Grove and made wonderful friends and learned a lot. Though I have wandered off again, I still consider myself a Crane..albeit an out dwelling one.

My path can be best described as Discordian-Eclectic Kitchen Witch. Heh. You have been warned…