Want instant fall vibes? Fill a simmer pot with sliced fruit, herbs and spices. These seven different stovetop potpourri blends will make your home smell amazing and feel like fall, no matter what the weather is like outside!
Scent has the ability to transport us to different times and places and to affect our moods. Today, I’m sharing seven easy stovetop potpourri recipes made with ingredients you probably already have in the fridge or pantry.
They will definitely put you in the mood for fall!
I’ve also included a printable fall simmer pot recipe card with instructions on how to make simmering potpourri.
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Jump to:
- What Is a Potpourri Simmer Pot
- How to Make a Stovetop Potpourri
- Variations
- What to Use in Stovetop Potpourri
- Fall Simmer Pot Blends
- Fresh Herbs to use in Simmer Pots
- Natural Materials to Use in Stovetop Potpourri
- Spices for Fall Potpourri Pots
- Fruits to Simmer on the Stovetop
- Reusing Leftover Simmer Pot Ingredients
- Stovetop Potpourri Gift Ideas
- More Ways to Make Your Home Smell Great
What Is a Potpourri Simmer Pot
A potpourri simmer pot, sometimes also called stovetop potpourri or simmering potpourri, is a great all-natural alternative to burning a candle.
To make one, you combine aromatics, such as fresh rosemary, cinnamon sticks, and allspice, with water and simmer them on the stovetop. Sometimes, stovetop potpourri will also include sliced fruit.
Oranges and other citrus are especially popular additions.
A potpourri simmer pot will infuse your house with wonderful fragrance for hours. The aroma is often reminscient of baked goods or your favorite comfort foods.
Stovetop potpourri is especially popular in the cooler months, but you can mix make a batch anytime of year with seasonally appropriate ingredients.
How to Make a Stovetop Potpourri
- Slice fruits, leaving the rinds intact, and place into a medium-sized sauce pan.
- Add herbs and spices and cover with water.
- Bring to a boil over medium heat, reduce heat and simmer.
- Do not leave the simmer pot unattended and check periodically — every 30 minutes or so — to ensure water remains in the pan. Add more water as necessary.
Variations
- Use apple cider, another fruit juice or red wine in place of water.
- Use dried potpourri, like this homemade Christmas potpourri, instead of fresh ingredients.
- Instead of cooking on the stovetop, fill a small Crock-Pot or slow cooker with water and other simmering potpourri ingredients. Cover and heat on high until steamy. Uncover and reduce heat to low. Add water, as needed to ensure slow cooker remains halfway full throughout cooking time.
What to Use in Stovetop Potpourri
There’s no limit to the aromatic ingredients you can use to make simmering potpourri. Use your favorite combinations of herbs, spices and fruit to create a signature house blend.
I’ve included ideas for seven distinctive fall simmer pot blends.
These blends were specifically created for fall. But they would also work for Christmas and throughout the winter season.
Fall Simmer Pot Blends
- First Day of Fall Blend: orange, cinnamon, cloves and rosemary
- Apple Cider Blend: apple, orange, cinnamon, cranberry, allspice, nutmeg
- Pumpkin Spice Blend: cinnamon, orange, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla bean
- Orchard Blend: rosemary, apple, orange and cinnamon
- Vanilla Spice Blend: vanilla bean or vanilla extract, bay leaf, rosemary and orange
- Grandma’s Kitchen Blend: orange, allspice, cloves, cinnamon, rosemary
- Woody Citrus Blend: lemon, orange, ginger, rosehip and vanilla
If you want a printable sheet, which includes all the blends, to hang on your fridge or in your kitchen cabinet, enter your information below to have it emailed to you. You’ll also receive my newletter filled with ideas to make your home brighter and your heart lighter.
My simmering potpourri blends will keep your home smelling great for a long time. But don’t stop there. Use any combination of herbs, natural materials, spices and fruit to make an all-natural air freshener and mood lifter!
Fresh Herbs to use in Simmer Pots
If you’ve ever cooked with fresh herbs, then you know how amazing they make your kitchen smell. For that reason, it’s a great idea to use fresh herbs in homemade potpourri.
- rosemary
- lavender
- thyme
- bay leaf
- sage
Natural Materials to Use in Stovetop Potpourri
Any fragrant natural material, fresh or dried, can be used. Forage your yard, with an eye (or a nose) for things that smell good!
- cedar
- eucalyptus
- pine cones
- rosehip
- pine needles
- wood chips
- bark
Spices for Fall Potpourri Pots
I prefer to use whole spices when I’m making a stovetop potpourri because I think they look prettier simmering in the pan. But you can also use ground spices if that’s all you have.
- cinnamon sticks or ground cinnamon
- pumpkin pie spice
- nutmeg
- vanilla beans or extract
- cloves
- allspice
- star anise
- fresh or ground ginger
Fruits to Simmer on the Stovetop
Save the peels from citrus fruit to use in simmer pots, or add fruit slices to the simmering water. Other fruits, like cranberries, can be used whole. You can use dried or fresh fruits.
- sliced oranges or orange peels
- cranberries
- apples
- sliced pears
- sliced lemons or lemon peels
- sliced limes or lime peels
- pomengranate
- dried fruit (dried citrus and cranberries work well)
Reusing Leftover Simmer Pot Ingredients
Once you’re finished with your stovetop potpourri for the day, you don’t have to throw it away.
Drain out the solids or pour off the water. Then, store the leftovers in a jar or another airtight container in the refrigerator.
You should be able to reuse the leftovers to make another simmer pot the next day. You may need to add more spices (if using ground spices). Some sliced fruit may not keep as well as others.
Stovetop Potpourri Gift Ideas
Stovetop potpourri makes a great host or hostess gift or party favors.
Package the ingredients in a mason jar or cellophane bag tied with pretty ribbon. Leave any fruits whole and unsliced when packaging as a gift.
Include instructions for how to make a potpourri simmer pot. Don’t forget to include a copy of my simmer pot blends printable.
More Ways to Make Your Home Smell Great
Try one of these other easy home fragrance projects:
- Christmas Potpourri with Dried Oranges
- Cassia and Orange Candles
- DIY Reed Diffuser
- Oyster Shell Candles
- Homemade Potpourri Scent Jars
- Wax Lavender Sachets
Pin This! Fall Stovetop Potpourri Ideas & Recipes
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