With hints of Cinnamon, citrus and cranberry, This Holiday Stovetop Potpourri naturally makes your whole home smell warm and inviting!
Have you ever noticed that certain smells can take you back to memories that you had forgotten about? The power of scent is strong. That’s why candles, air fresheners and waxes sell so well this time of year!
This Holiday Stovetop Potpourri fills your home with the smell of cinnamon and cloves, orange and cranberry. It smells like everything Thanksgiving and Christmas and is 100% natural.
Why Make Holiday Stovetop Potpourri?
Holiday celebrations usually include guests and everyone wants to make a good impression! A lot of people are allergic to artificial scents used in candles and air fresheners and this is a great alternative!
This recipe is simple and involves ingredients that most people have in their homes during the holiday season. The best part is that the scent isn’t overpowering at all… it just smells like home for the holidays.

About the Ingredients
Fresh cranberries are inexpensive and can be kept frozen and used without thawing. The citrus notes come from one medium orange, but a couple of lemons could be used instead, or even in addition to the orange. The use of spices such as cloves and nutmeg (or ginger) smell like holiday baking and the potpourri keeps giving off scent for as long as you keep adding water, even all day. The scent slowly sneaks into each room making the whole house smell amazing.
How To Make Holiday Stovetop Potpourri
Beginning around Thanksgiving, fresh cranberries are in abundance and they are priced to sell. I will admit that I never used to buy fresh cranberries to eat. I have always been perfectly fine with the canned kind, but my recipe for Simple Homemade Cranberry Sauce kind of changed that. If I buy a big bag, I use the extra to make this recipe, usually a few times throughout the holidays.
In a medium saucepan, combine one cup of fresh cranberries, a couple of cinnamon sticks, broken in half, a teaspoon of whole cloves, 1/8 of a teaspoon of nutmeg or ground ginger (whatever you have on hand) and a cut up orange.

Add 4 cups of water and place the saucepan over high heat until it starts to come to a bubble (not a boil). Then reduce the heat to medium-low heat and give it a stir.

Leave the saucepan simmering over medium-low for as long as you want. Give it a stir once in a while and add more water when you need to. This combination makes the whole house smell good for hours. It’s beginning to smell like the holiday season! Enjoy!

Other Holiday Recipes You May Enjoy
Parker House Dinner Rolls – these perfectly soft and delicious dinner rolls are great as an addition to Thanksgiving dinner and also as a vessel for leftover turkey sandwiches. Yum!
Caramel Apple Pie – A seasonal favorite with fresh crisp apples in a rich caramel sauce.
Pan Fried Brussels Sprouts with Bacon – Great as a Thanksgiving side or part of a regular dinner, these are Brussels Sprouts that everyone will like!
Christmas Pretzel M&M Hugs – So cute and so easy these little bites bring a smile to everyone!
Hearty Baked Breakfast Casserole – An all in one Hearty Baked Breakfast Casserole packed full of Canadian bacon, bite sized sausage pieces and fluffy, cheesy eggs.


Holiday Stovetop Potpourri
Ingredients
- 1 cup fresh cranberries (can be frozen)
- 1 orange cut in half and sliced
- 2-3 cinnamon sticks broken in half
- 1 tsp whole cloves
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg or ground ginger
- 4 cups water
Instructions
- Place all ingredients into a medium saucepan.
- Turn heat to high and bring to a bubble.
- Stir and turn down to medium-low heat so mixture stays at a low simmer.
- Stir occasionally and add water as needed for as long as desired. Enjoy!
* The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator.

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