Fresh Home Scent Simmer Pot

If I am going to be in and around my kitchen for a good part of the day, I like to start a ‘simmer pot’ to waft a lovely soothing scent through the room and house. This recipe gives a wintery scent, with the cloves especially and you could add a sprig of pine to make it extra festive.  The lemon makes it fresh and invigorating. I enjoy eating the apple and orange or nectarine once peeled (since you only need their peels) so it’s a treat for the nose and mouth!  

Ingredients

• 8 cups Water

• 1 whole (or more as you wish) Lemon Rind and Peel

• 1 whole Orange or Nectarine/Mandarin Peel

• 1 whole Apple Peel

• 3 Cinnamon Sticks

• 1 Tablespoon whole Cardamon seeds/pods

• ¼ cup whole Cloves

• 1” piece (or more as you wish) Ginger – sliced thinly

How It’s Made

• Bring Water to boil in a medium sized pot.

• Add all the ingredients, stir and lower the heat so the mixture is at a gentle simmer.

• Let the pot sit on the low heat simmering, releasing its subtle aroma for as long as you would like. I leave mine for about 3 hours, checking it every half hour.  You could add more water to the pot as the water reduces down to keep it going longer.

• I have heard of people drinking their simmer pot mixtures (depending on what’s in it!) as a tea after it has simmered for an hour or so – because really it is the same as an ‘infusion’ (more on those in a later post!). You could do it with this recipe as it is made with all delicious and edible ingredients. 

Enjoy!

Tip – I juice the lemon and keep the juice in a jar in the fridge. This leaves just the lemon rind and peel to easily cut up to use in the simmer pot. 

Variations

• Add a sprig of pine for a holiday scent.

• Include Star Anise Pods (3-4) for a holiday scent.

• Add more or less of the ingredients above to heighten that scent so it’s stronger.

• Use the peel of 2 Pears or a Granny Smith apple instead of the Royal Gala I used in the photos.

• Use a lime along with the lemon.