Holiday Slow Cooker Potpourri

If I could have my home smell like a bakery 24/7 without having to slave over the actual "baking" part or even having to spend hundreds of dollars on candles, I would be a pretty happy camper. There is nothing like the smell of apple cider mixed with cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and allspice. It's such a warm and inviting scent that is a hint of sweet and a hint of spice.

Our bulk area is loaded with spices to make wonderful slow cooker potpourris. Everything from cinnamon chips to cinnamon sticks, whole nutmeg to allspice berries. We have all the ingredients you need to make these delicious recipes listed below.

Holiday Slow Cooker Potpourri

5 to 6 cinnamon sticks, broken

1 tbsp. lemon peel

1 tbsp. orange peel

1/2 c. whole cloves

1 tbsp. nutmeg

1/4 c. whole allspice

1 tbsp. bay leaf pieces

2 slices dried apples, optional

Combine ingredients. Add to your slow cooker and set to low.

Citrus Vanilla Dream

2 C water

2 T orange peel

1/4 vanilla bean (chopped and split)

5 drops bergamot essential oil

5 drops lemon essential oil

(Essential oils can be found in the Health & Beauty section. They can even be purchased by the drop!)

Combine ingredients. Add to slow cooker and set to low.

Coffee Potpourri

Fresh ground coffee beans
Any or all of the following: vanilla extract, almond extract, cinnamon sticks, orange peel, dried carob, chickory.

Anything that tastes good in coffee will work, (except for creamer and cocoa powder, which don’t simmer very well).

Chai Tea Potpourri

Black tea bags
Vanilla extract

Chai spices include the following, so use any or all of them: cinnamon, cloves, allspice, nutmeg, black pepper, ginger, coriander seed, mace, star anise, fennel, bay leaf.

When you’re done simmering, you could strain this into a cup, add some milk, and enjoy a chai tea latte!

Tips:

Storage: You can refrigerate your simmering recipe and reuse daily for up to one week. Just keep adding water as needed.

Frugal Idea: For apple juice, cranberry juice, herbs and spices that are outdated, don’t throw out–just add to your simmering pot.

Try using parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme. Sprinkle dried versions of these into simmering water and you get a wonderful green herbal scent!

Have fun experimenting! We have a huge variety of herbs, spices, oils, coffees and teas to help you play!