Double, Double, Toil and Trouble

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"Fillet of a fenny snake, In the cauldron boil and bake; Eye of newt and toe of frog, Wool of bat and tongue of dog, Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting, Lizard's leg and owlet's wing, For a charm of powerful trouble, Like a hell-broth boil and bubble." --MacBeth The above 'recipe' (spell) sounds like something terrible, sinister, and badly behaving towards animals was taking place. Eye of newt? Toe of frog? Let's dissect (pun intended) this spell and see what was really cooking in that witches' cauldron. Eye of Newt No, we're not plucking eyeballs out of defenseless little newts, this is actually mustard seed. Yep, that's right, your common household condiment herb. Nothing spooky so far... Toe of Frog Again, not maiming any frogs. Toe of frog is better known as Buttercup leaves. Not tasty, and POISON! (Insert witch cackle here) Wool of Bat Bat's wool is actually Holly, or English moss. Depending on how sick you want the intended to be, you can use Holly which is poisonous, or moss which is not. Tongue of Dog Tongue of Dog is Hound's Tooth. (Remember that awful horehound candy great grandma used to have?) This is used in teas as a diuretic, and way back when was thought to cure "madness". Adder's Fork Now we know an adder is a snake, so what would be a snake's fork? Its tongue of course. While the plant here in no way (That I can See) resembles a snakes tongue, it is very nutritious. It is the violet. Blindworm's Sting Some have said this is the actual blindworm which is venomous, but it is not. Blindworm refers to Knotweed which is very hearty, grows in the worst conditions, and is extremely nutritious. Lizard's Leg Lizard's Leg is nothing more than English Ivy. This plant has tons of medicinal properties and is used for things from lung function to gout. Great little weed there. Owlet's Wing Simply put, Owlet's wing is garlic or ginger. Which ever you choose. I saved the best (or worst) for last. Fillet of a fenny snake. A fenny snake is just a snake that lives in the fens, a swampy district of Eastern England. I suppose back then, this was an easy meat to trap. Maybe you could substitute a meat or protein better to your liking. Back in the day, you had to take what you could get. No Food Lions and Piggly Wigglys. So other than the Buttercups and Holly, this brew is harmless! So there's a bit of useless knowledge I have shared with you. Hope you enjoyed.