The Autumn Equinox is swiftly on it’s way and there is nothing quite like the scents of Autumn filling the home. Am I right? Cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves, pumpkin spice and apple pie. Autumn has, without a doubt, some of my favourite aromas. And nothing creates a warm cozy atmosphere more than having these wafting throughout your home. Enter the simmer pot.
Now while I am a huge fan of scented candles and room sprays (natural ones of course), there is nothing quite like the way aromas created by a simmer pot fill your home with warmth and amazing energies.
Simmer pots are an efficient and non-toxic way to have your home smelling like autumn in a few short minutes.
And, added bonus, they also have wonderful magickal properties attached to them.
Read on to discover a few delicious recipes to have your home smelling lovely and your kitchen magick brewing this autumn season.
The Simmer Pot
Simmer pots are like boiled potpourri. Which sounds a bit weird, but it’s an accurate description lol.
You choose your ingredients, put them in a pot with water, bring to a boil and then turn down to a simmer and let it do its thing.
They couldn’t be any easier, just be sure you don’t let your pot boil dry! If you want to keep the pot going simply add more water when it gets low. And obviously never leave your stove on when you aren’t home. Let’s use our common sense here friends.
Simmer pots also lack the harsh toxins that are packed into conventional air freshener sprays and scented candles. Just fresh ingredients from your kitchen! Fake fragrance oils need not apply.
One more benefit, they are economical. Simmer pots are cost effective and can be thrown together with things you likely already have in your kitchen.
Just Say No to Chemicals
So let’s be real, generic scented candles and air fresheners are some pretty serious toxic offenders.
Paraffin candles give off toxic fumes on their own and now lets add mystery ingredient fragrance oils on top of that. Cause you know, they can just say they use ‘fragrance oils’ and be done with it. What exactly is in the ‘fragrance’? We really have no idea.
And air fresheners are a whole other ball game. You are literally just breathing in toxic fumes. That are almost always overpowering enough to have you choking on them. How refreshing! Note the sarcasm there.
My favourite ways to naturally freshen up my space are room sprays (non-toxic that I blend myself), soy essential oil scented candles, using my diffuser, and you guessed it, simmer pots!
There are so many natural ways to have your home smelling divine. You can most definitely skip the artificial stuff.
Simmer Pot Magick
Another great thing about a simmer pot is they can be used to assist in your magickal goals. You just need to choose the right ingredients to fit your agenda.
Items that create those autumn vibes have a wide array of magickal properties attached to them that can be used to your advantage.
When I do a simmer pot with a magickal goal in mind, I follow these simple steps to incorporate my magick and intention into the process:
- Fill pot with water about 3/4 full.
- Add ingredients to the pot and bring to a boil.
- Reduce to a simmer, stir the pot clockwise. Unless you are doing a banishing or releasing spell, in that case stir the pot counter clockwise.
- Visualize your desired outcome or goal for the magickal work you are doing. Are you aiming to create happiness in the home, or more money in your wallet? Whatever it may be focus on what you want the outcome to look like. Continue with the visualization and stirring until it feels right to finish. You’ll know when!
- You may recite your goal, a chant, or ritual words while you stir as well. Something pertaining to your desired outcome.
- When you finish I would let the pot boil down until there is about an inch of water left and then turn it off. Your work is now complete
Note: You may also trace runes or symbols related to your goal in the air above the pot if you feel so inclined. Feel free to be inventive and really personalize the experience!
Simmer Pot Recipes
Apple Pie – for peace, harmony and love
- 3 apple slices
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 tbsp all spice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Pumpkin Spice – for prosperity, success, and wealth
- 1 tsp pumpkin spice
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 tsp cloves
- 2 orange slices
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
A Taste of Autumn – for protection and releasing negative energies
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1 tbsp whole cloves
- 2 orange slices
- 1 lemon slice
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Witch Spice – for balance and inner strength
- 1 tsp star anise
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 tbsp all spice
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp ginger
These amounts are simply guidelines and ratios that I enjoy. Use more or less to suit your own tastes. Be creative and mix things up!
Love these recipes? Check out my whole seasonal simmer pot collection HERE.
What to do with your simmer pot ingredients when you are finished?
Another awesome thing about simmer pots is that they don’t create waste. You can simply compost your ingredients or dry them out and store in an airtight container to be used in future spells or for potpourri.
A note on using essential oils in your simmer pots.
Many people recommend essential oils as a good ingredient for your simmer pots. I fully have to disagree for a couple of reasons.
Essential oils are expensive and why use Lemon EO when you can use leftover lemon rinds? Or Clove EO when you have the spice sitting in your cupboard?
Another big reason for me is that essential oils are all flammable and have their own flashpoints (point at which the vapours formed can ignite if exposed to spark or flame). This caution is especially true if you have a gas stove.
I simply don’t use them in the kitchen at all when I have the stove on, call me paranoid, which I most definitely can be lol. Some people use them all of the time for their pots and it’s totally fine.
If you do decide to use them just use caution, common sense, and know well the oils you are working with.
But really an unnecessary addition to your simmer pots in my opinion when there are so many whole, natural, and affordable ingredients already in your kitchen.
Final thoughts.
Do you already do simmer pots at home? If so, what is your favourite recipe?
As always, I love to hear from you, so please leave a comment or connect with me on socials.
If you enjoyed this post and for more Autumn inspiration you can check out my Autumn Kitchen Witch Handbook for recipes, rituals, and autumn correspondences.
And you can SUBSCRIBE to The Wholesome Witch Mailing List to receive a 20% OFF discount code for my Autumn Kitchen Witch Handbook, as well as FREE Daily Witch Planner Pages as a thank you!
Until next time friends!
Yours in health and magic,
Krystle xo
P.S. If you enjoyed this post you may also like diving into some candle magic as we enter this darker part of the year. You can check out my Candle Magic for Beginners post to get you started!
