I love fall scents, but candles make my head hurt, and the good ones cost way too much. Then a friend showed me the simmer pot trick: you boil fruit and spices on the stove, and the whole house smells like autumn for pennies.

The basic simmer pot

1. Fill a pot with water.
2. Add one orange, sliced, and a handful of cinnamon sticks.
3. Add a few whole cloves and a star anise if you have them.
4. Bring it to a boil, then drop the heat to a low simmer.
5. Top up the water every hour or so. The goal is to keep it simmering, not boil it dry.

The scent fills the kitchen and drifts through the house. It smells like a bakery, and there are no chemicals, no smoke, no expensive candle jar to throw away.

Try these combos

• Apple pie: apple peels, cinnamon, a splash of vanilla extract
• Pumpkin spice: pumpkin scraps, nutmeg, cloves, ginger
• Forest walk: pine needles, rosemary, a few drops of lemon
• Holiday: cranberries, orange peel, cinnamon

Why it works better than candles

Candles only scent the air near the flame, and you have to babysit them. A simmer pot steams scent continuously for hours, and you can leave it on low while you work in another room, as long as you check the water level. The steam also adds a little moisture to dry fall air, which is a bonus.

My first attempt failed

I left the pot on high and came back to a scorched orange smell that took a day to air out. Low and slow is the rule. If you are leaving the house, turn it off. Never leave a simmering pot unattended for long stretches.

Use up scraps

This is the best part. Apple peels, orange rinds, and spice ends that would go in the compost bin make great simmer pots. Nothing to buy, nothing wasted, and the house smells incredible.

My house smells like fall from October through December now, and I have not bought a single candle.