Autumn Simmer Pots

Autumn Simmer Pots

Autumn, Autumn Equinox, Samhain, Simmer Pot
Autumn is when simmer pot season really starts in earnest around our house. A simmer pot is basically a homemade air freshener made by simmering fragrant pieces of fruits, herbs, and other spices in water. You throw some nice smelling things into a pot and let it just simmer on the stove all day. It makes the house smell amazing and cozy. It's a great way to make use of apple peels and core from fall baking. I went ahead and used teh cut outs from our jack-o-lanterns too! I went beyond the usual apples and spices in the harvest simmer pot, using some common fall garden plants and weeds. Sweet autumn clematis is terribly invasive in my area so I don't feel at all and about yanking it. It also…
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Elderberry Syrup Jam/ Caramel

Elderberry Syrup Jam/ Caramel

Autumn, Recipes
This recipe was a series of happy accidents. It’s elderberry month with the Plant Wonder Collective and initially I was pretty stumped for what to make other than my usual elderberry syrup. Despite the best efforts of my local catbirds, we had a nice harvest of fresh elderberries this year so I concluded that I wanted to use them fresh rather than drying them like I usually do. I settled on old fashioned elderberry jam, but flavored it the same way I would typically flavor my elderberry syrup so it had some of the same health benefits while being more appealing to my kiddos. So I added honey and all the usual herbs and spices to my jam mixture. (click on the link above for the full syrup recipe) It’s…
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