AUSET (Isis) & AUSAR (Osiris), both being Agricultural and Fertility aspects of Neter, claim nearly everything as Sacred Food.
As Goddess of Orchards, all fruits grown on trees are sacred to Her. Palms are sacred to both Aset and Asar, as are dates and coconuts (an excellent Lunar symbol food, by the way). Palm hearts, however, would NOT be an appropriate offering, since followers of Aset and Asar were forbidden to destroy a cultivated tree, and the removal of the edible palm heart kills the palm.
Breads of all kinds were held in high esteem by the Ancient Egyptians, and make ideal offerings. Frequently breads were baked in special shapes for offering purposes, and Auset Herself was said to bake offering loaves for the Great God (Ausar). One charming custom required flat, round loaves of bread with little human-shaped ears pinched into the center, to encourage the God or Goddess to hear
the supplicant's prayers.
Although it offends modern whole-grain preferences, the Egyptians valued pure white bread above all other kinds, and prayed for an endless supply in the Afterlife. Crescent-shaped rolls were also used as offerings. If your morning breakfast includes a croissant, you are eating a bread sacred for its lunar connatations. The Egyptians had dozens of different types of loaves, many with special ritual purposes that are, unfortanately, obscure to us today. Onions were a staple food of the Egyptians, and workers were often partially paid in onions. Garlic and leeks were also widely consumed, and garlic was used in many medicinal compounds.
Lettuce was considered to be Sethian in nature -- Set's garden was said to have contained a great deal of lettuce, which he valued for its supposed aphrodisiac properties. The clergy of the Temple of Isis at Philae were forbidden to eat lettuce. Another Sethian food plant was the watermelon, which was believed to have sprung up when Set, in the form of a bull, was pursuing Isis with the intent of raping Her. She escaped and Set, still in his bull form, spilled semen on the ground. From this ejaculation the watermelon was created. Honey was frequently used as an offering, as well as an ingredient in incenses and medicines. Both Aset and Asar were associated with bees and bee-keeping. One of Auset's Titles was Lady of the House of Bees.
Good, nourishing food of all kinds was sacred. Although some members of the priestly classes adopted vegetarian diets, this was not universal. Others abstained partially or completely from wine.
At Pompeii, the priests appear to have followed a plain diet, if the remains of their last lunch are any indication. Buried in the ash after the eruption of Venuvius in 79 CE, the table at the Temple of ISIS held eggs, nuts, and fish. Feasting was an important part of the Temple services, especially at the temples of Serapis. His temples, which almost invariably had a shrine to Isis or were fully shared with Her, often maintained banquet facilities. These were used by guilds of lay worshippers, who met regularly in the temple precincts for a good meal and fellowship with other worshippers. The menus for these meals, based on surviving cost listings, were extensive (as well as extensive), but appear to have been very popular.
Wine was produced from early times in Egypt. At first, it was almost exclusively produced on temple lands for the use of priestesses and priests, similar to the many Christian monasteries which still produce wine from their vineyards. The common, secular folk drank mostly beer. By the Greco-Roman period, wine was in general use throughout the Mediterranean region, frequently produced from vineyards established with rootstocks brought from Egypt.
Temples sometimes produced vintages for local distribution or international export. Terracotta labels designed to hang about the necks of wine vessels are often found with Isian symbolism, indicating temple use or use by worshippers at home. Not surprisingly, these artifacts are most frequently found in the rich vine-producing regions of France and Germany, which even in ancient times maintained renowned vineyards. Some of these are still producing today, and occasionally yield a statue or other artifact of ISIS. A wine-cup belonging to a shrine of Isis on the island of Paosin the Agean Sea has a long inscription to "Isis the GREAT" dated with charming precision to October 26. 73 CE.
Later associations between ISIS and DIONYSUS, God of Wine and Ecstasy, further strengthened ISIS' role as Lady of Wine. Dark, sweet wines were traditionally held to be most sacred to Her. A wonderful modern wine which meets these requirements is Mavrodaphne, a Greek wine produced in districts where the worship of ISIS existed from early times. It is created from vines which grew near Knossos in Crete, where ISIS also found worshippers. Be warned, however: sweet wines are strong wines, and drunkenness was specifically forbidden in the temple Rites of ISIS.
Milk was also sacred to ISIS (as a cow Goddess) and a recipe for the sacred "Milk of ISIS" still survives. This pink-tinted, sweetened milk represented the healing, nourishing milk provided by ISIS for Her son Horus and to the pharaohs as Her Divine sons. Milk was carried in Isisian processions in a situla (a breast-shaped pail), which allowed a stream of liquid to spill onto the earth as a consectrated and consecrating offering.
