christmas potpourri

{Christmas Potpourri}

5 sticks of cinnamon

1/4 cup whole cloves

1 cup citrus peels

1 cup pine needles

2 bay leaves

I broke the orange peels into little bits and then put a couple pretty orange slices in the bag for looks. If you are making your own, you don't have to dry them! Just slice up fresh oranges (or use fresh peels) and throw them in the pan.

To dry your oranges, put thin slices (or peels) in a 175 degree oven for 6 hours, turning every so often. (I was too impatient and turned them up to 200 for about 4-5 hours.) Or you can just leave your peels on a plate on the counter over night.

If you don't have one of the ingredients, it doesn't matter! (Cinnamon and/or pine are probably key for the smell though...) Just put what you have in a pot and you've got that heavenly Christmas smell.

P.S. I spelled potpourri wrong on my first batch of neighbor gifts... hope nobody noticed! :)