Recipe(tried): Hi, Clarissa! Debbie's Christmas Scent

Whenever I want the house to smell "homey," I make up this Christmas Scent concoction. Since I had peeled about 12 oranges for my Christmas ambrosia, I used orange peelings. However, you could use sliced apples, that were too soft to eat, leftover lemon slices, or limes that were past their prime.

Here is the recipe that I used to make this Christmas Scent with some variations for you, too.

DEBBIE'S CHRISTMAS SCENT

orange peelings
7-8 whole cloves
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
water

Remember, the more orange peelings that you have the stronger the scent. Put all of these items in a crockpot and begin cooking on HIGH. Cook on HIGH as long as you want the scent. Do not put the cover on the crockpot. This "concoction" may be reused for 2-3 days.

Whenever you have tired of this scent, drain the water, discard the spice/orange combination, and wash the crockpot.

Here are some variations that I have tried and these smell really good, too!

apples--peelings and cores after baking a pie or after eating an apple. Just make sure to rinse the apple core after someone has eaten it.
pears--peelings and cores after eating, making sure to rinse the pear core after someone has eaten it.
cinnamon sticks--as many as you like
nutmeg
lemon slices, squeeze the juice into the crockpot, too
cloves--7-8
lemon and lime slices, squeeze the juice into the crockpot, too
cinnamon
nutmeg
allspice
pumpkin pie spice
cloves

Just put in the crockpot the spices that you enjoy smelling while they are cooking--cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice, and allspice. Make sure to have some kind of fruit peelings or soft fruit that is unusable to put in the crockpot. Add enough water to cover the "smell goodies" and let simmer, adding water as needed.

I'm so glad that you like the blackeyed peas cooked in the crockpot. It's the only way that I cook them, too.

Happy New Year, Clarissa!