There is something about stovetop potpourri during the holiday and winter season. It always feels extra cozy to me as the simmering scent permeates throughout the air. Even when I used to burn a lot of candles, I still preferred mulling spice on top of the stove in the Fall and Winter. A mix of cloves, cinnamon, and oranges is hard to beat. Well, as long as it’s not too overpowering. I think that’s why I don’t actually like the word “potpourri.” I think of an overpowering headache smell. This is not that! There are so many versions of stovetop potpourri you can make depending on what you like and have on hand. I will share “recipes” and you can branch off from them. How To Make DIY Stovetop Potpourri:
How To Make DIY Stovetop Potpourri:
- Add potpourri ingredients to a saucepan or large pot. You need less ingredients in a saucepan.
- Fill the saucepan or pot with water. Fill it to about the same level as you do when boiling pasta.
- Heat on the stovetop until just short of boiling and then lower the heat to right below simmer.
- Enjoy the scent as it fills the air.
I have a dedicated mulling spice saucepan that just sits on a back burner for about two months straight during the holidays. The same ingredients get heated up over and over again until the scent dies down or the ingredients start to look scary. I just add more water to the mix each day so that the water does not get too low and burn the pan.
Cranberry Orange Cinnamon Potpourri
A simple 3 ingredient classic potpourri. Fresh or frozen cranberries, some orange slices, and cinnamon sticks. You can use any proportions you wish. Use more orange slices if you want more of an orange scent or another cinnamon stick or two if you want more of a cinnamon scent.
For my small sauce pan, I use a heaping cup of cranberries, 4 orange slices, and 2 cinnamon sticks. You could also just use orange zest and the peel of an orange in place of sliced oranges. The sliced oranges make it look really pretty, but the zest and peel carry a lot of the aroma if you still want to eat that orange.
You can also add in cloves or nutmeg (grated or whole) to this mix. If you don’t want to use any of your precious fruit (I get it), just heat up a mix of cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon sticks, and star anise. This is also a good mix to heat up over and over again since there is not any fresh fruit to go bad.
Rosemary Lemon Potpourri
For a fresher scent opt for a rosemary lemon potpourri with whole peppercorns. I love the scent of this one. The rosemary is a bit reminiscent of pine. It’s a great one to make come January when you are deep cleaning the house to feel fresh after the holidays. With this said, the uplifting scent might cheer you up in December if you get the winter blues. The next time a recipe calls for fresh rosemary and you are not sure what to do with the rest of your package of rosemary, turn to this.
If you want to cozy or sweeten up this scent a bit, add in a little bit of vanilla powder, vanilla bean, or vanilla extract.
Another fresh scent is a mix of fresh THYME sprigs, fresh MINT, and LIME slices. 3 thyme sprigs, 10-15 mint leaves, and 2 lime slices is a good amount to simmer in a saucepan.
Just make sure to turn the burner off if you leave the house and add more water to your pot if it gets too low.
What’s your favorite mix? Tell me below! Sky is the limit with stovetop potpourri.
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Grateful you are following along! xx Riane
YOU MAY ENJOY: WHAT’S INSIDE MY SPICE DRAWER (& WHAT I USE EACH FOR)
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