Holiday Simmering Potpourri

Prepare jars of Holiday Simmering Potpourri as a hostess gift or a holiday party favour, but be sure to keep one or two jars for yourself! You don’t want to miss out on treating yourself to the spicy, sweet, Christmas-like scent that fills your entire home. Just add water and place over low heat for hours of gorgeously delicious fragrance!

First of all, let me just get this one thing out of the way. Holiday Simmering Potpourri is not a recipe, although it does have a list of items needed to prepare it. Secondly, I know you signed up for recipes, and even though this is not something you can eat, it is certainly something you can smell! These make a great gift idea and all you need to do is add some water and simmer the contents on the stove. They bring hours and hours of the most intoxicatingly warm and cozy holiday scent!

I thought long and hard about posting this, but in the end, I decided to do it, because it is a part of my homemade holiday gifts series. And, truth be told, I don’t know about you, but we all get enough candies and cookies given to us over the holidays, so I would totally welcome something that can’t stuff my face with! Ha! I know I’m not the only one who feels that way!

And, for the sake of my sanity and to appease the Lords at Google, I’m going to refer to this as a recipe. If you can’t bear it, I encourage you to scroll back up and just click on the Jump to Recipe button. It will take you right down to the list of items you need to prepare this potpourri.

I’m going to tell you all about this potpourri and how you can make it in your home this holiday season. I know we’re getting closer to the big day, which means that someone is out there running out of time and is in a race with the clock to find a gift for someone. That is why I’m sharing this new series with you called Lord Byron’s 12 Homemade Holiday Gifts Series!

Back in October, I kicked off the holiday season with a holiday recipe series called Lord Byron’s 12 Holiday Trifles Series and followed that up with a second series called Lord Byron’s 12 Holiday Breads and Loaves. Next was a second volume of my 12 Bars and Squares of Christmas! You can find the first bars and squares series here! After that came the seventh annual instalment of Lord Byron’s 24 Cookies of Christmas!

LORD BYRON’S 12 SNACKS & TREATS OF CHRISTMAS

Another holiday series, Lord Byron? Yes – why not!? Welcome, Dear Reader, to my last Christmas series this holiday season! I’m calling this series Lord Byron’s 12 Homemade Holiday Gifts Series. Unlike the 24 Cookies of Christmas series that ended a few days ago, this series will focus on easy-to-make snacks and treats that are both delicious and festive.

I will try to keep the recipes in this series quick and easy too. Most of them will require the help of a microwave rather than an oven. And, a bunch of them will involve more assembly-type tasks rather than preheating, beating, whipping, etc.

Just like every other series that I’ve shared here, this series will also see a new snack or treat recipe shared with you, Dear Reader, each and every single day for the next 12 days – even on Saturday and Sunday! You might be asking yourself, how many Christmas recipes could one possibly have or need? Well, I say you can never have too much of a good thing. And, I love having lots of choices. Who wants to prepare the same holiday snacks and treats year after year?

SUBSCRIBE NOW SO THAT YOU NEVER MISS OUT ON NEW RECIPES!

You really don’t want to miss one of these recipes, so if you have not yet subscribed to Lord Byron’s Kitchen, I encourage you to do so. That way, a new recipe will be emailed to you every day. You won’t have to bother to come looking for it! Like in previous holiday recipe countdowns, I like to mix up the recipes in the series so that there is something for everyone. Are you ready!!??

ITEMS NEEDED TO PREPARE THIS POTPOURRI

The following is a list of the items needed to prepare these gifts. For exact amounts and measurements, refer to the printable recipe card located near the bottom of this post. I should also mention that you can easily make substitutions as well. For example, dried rosehips can be substituted with dried cranberries.

• Dried Orange Slices – You can make these yourself or you can buy them on Amazon or Etsy. Lemon slices can also be used.
• Cinnamon Sticks
• Star Anise
• Whole Cloves and Allspice
• Fresh Rosemary
• Dried Rosehips – You can substitute these with dried cranberries.

HOW TO MAKE HOLIDAY SIMMERING POTPOURRI

The ingredients listed will prepare 4 jars or bags if you decide to package them in bags rather than jars. You can multiply or divide the numbers to make more or fewer jars. In each jar, place 3 slices of the dried orange along with 4 cinnamon sticks. Next, add 4 star anise and one teaspoon each of the cloves and allspice.

Divide the dried rosehips among the four jars. Place a lid on the jar and decorate the jar according to your tastes, adding a sprig of fresh rosemary to the outside, not only as an ingredient but as a decorative garnish. To use, empty the contents of the jar into a small pot and cover the contents with cold tap water. Over low heat, simmer the ingredients for multiple hours, adding more water as needed.

PACKAGING AND GIFT-GIVING

As you can see, I used mason jars to pack my Holiday Simmering Potpourri into, but there’s no rule that you need to take that route as well. In fact, I once packaged the ingredients into cellophane bags and tied them up with festive holiday ribbons. Be sure to indicate how the potpourri should be used be including a note with instructions. I know that might sound funny, but not everyone will know that it is meant to be simmered.

Potpourri is sometimes used as a stand-alone item as well. It can be transferred to a decorative bowl and set out on a table. Naturally and without the addition of simmering water, the potpourri will release a scent, but it will be very mild. Again, this might sound like common knowledge, but I was once asked if it should be lit on fire! Never assume that common knowledge is common knowledge! Ha!

QUESTIONS?

If I have not answered all of your questions in the text above, don’t hesitate to reach out to me! You can contact me by sending me a message in the comments section further down the page. I will try my best to answer as soon as possible! You might reach me even faster by following me on Facebook and sending me a private message. Scroll down below the recipe card to find my Follow Me on Social Media box and never miss another recipe!