I personally love the idea of scented candles, but I don’t want the toxins that come along with them. A simmer pot is a great way to get the feel of a scented candle without artificial fragrances. You can get a similar feel by creating a winter simmer pot during the colder months. Your home will smell so good when you walk in, and it will be the first thing people will notice.
This post may contain affiliate links at no extra cost to you. Please read our Disclosure Policy.
Gather Ingredients – Winter Simmer Pot
Here are the ingredients I used this time. I often use whatever I have on hand. There’s really no wrong way to do this and if you have other things you want to add, I say go for it.
For this specific pot, I added
- Orange Slices and Peels – fresh or dried
- Cinnamon Sticks – or ground cinnamon
- Star Anise – adds such a beautiful shape to the pot
- Bourbon Vanilla Bean Paste – or vanilla extract (optional)
- Apple Slices
- Water – could also use apple juice or cider
Fill the Pot
Get a pot and fill it with your ingredients. Make sure you add the liquid, as well.
Once you turn the stove on, you’ll start to notice the sweet scent of the ingredients in the air. A simmer pot is such a simple and affordable way to freshen up the smell of your home and give it a festive feel.
Turn the stove on low heat and let it simmer for hours. Typically when I’m done, I turn off the heat, cover the simmer pot and leave it on the stove for later use. I typically continue to use it for 2-3 days.
Alternative Ingredients
- Fresh or dried orange, grapefruit or lemon slices
- Apples (slices or peels) – dried or fresh
- Fresh or dried rosemary
- Apple juice or cider instead of water (or half water, half juice)
- Pine branches or needles
- Spices (fresh or dried) like cinnamon, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, cardamon, ginger, star anise
- Vanilla extract
- Essential oils – like orange, clove, cinnamon, etc
- Cranberries (fresh or frozen)
How to Gift A Simmer Pot
This makes a great gift too – in one of two ways.
First, you can dehydrate all of the ingredients (or buy them already dehydrated) and put them in a cute jar with a ribbons and instructions tied to it.
OR
You could buy a cute mini dutch oven and fill it with all of the winter simmer pot ingredients (fresh or dried) and tie a ribbon around it with instructions attached. I probably wouldn’t use a mini dutch oven for food necessarily, but as a designated simmer pot, it would be so cute! And it would take up less room on your stove.
This would make an affordable, cute and practical gift for anyone in your life. I love the type of gift that gets used up, as it doesn’t add clutter to my home.
Pin for Later
Leave a Reply