Cinnamon Orange Christmas Ornaments

Today, I did some crafting for the holidays :)

First, I went to the dollar store and picked up three large bottles of cinnamon - and I do mean the cheap stuff...this is not the time to pull our your Ceylon cinnamon.  I ended up with plenty left over so two is likely enough.    I also picked up some applesauce and set out to make some handmade ornaments for our tree that smell amazing.

These ornaments are not edible but will fill your home with fragrance throughout the holiday season.  If you stop noticing the scent, you can scratch them a bit with a little sandpaper and the fragrance will be refreshed.  So pull out your rolling pin and your cookie cutters, gather your favorite kitchen helpers and make a homemade memory.

Cinnamon Orange Christmas Ornaments

Ingredients:
3/4 cup applesauce
1 cup ground cinnamon - plus extra for dusting the dough
10 drops cinnamon bark essential oil
10 drops orange essential oil

Tools:
mixing bowl
rolling pin
cookie sheets
wax paper
parchment paper
cookie cutters
drinking straw
ribbon for hanging when completed

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Add applesauce to mixing bowl.  Add essential oils and mix.  Add cinnamon and mix thoroughly - you may need to knead all the cinnamon in when the dough gets too stiff to stir.  You want the dough to come together and not be sticky.

Sprinkle the wax paper with cinnamon and roll out the dough to a thickness of about 1/4 inch.  It works best if you only roll out about 1/3 of the dough at a time.  Using cookie cutters, cut out ornaments and place on parchment lined cookie sheets about 2 inches apart.  Continue with remaining dough and remember to knead together the scraps to make even more ornaments.  For the size of cookie cutters I used, this recipe made 12 ornaments.

Take the drinking straw and use it to make a hole in each ornament at least 1/4 inch away from the edge so you will have a place to thread the ribbon when they are finished baking.

Bake the ornaments for 2 1/2 hours until they are completely dry.  Remove to a wire rack and cool completely.  Thread ribbon through the hole and hang these fragrant handmade pieces of art on your Christmas tree for a homey addition to your decorations.

I think the cinnamon orange scent is just perfect for the holiday season.  You could also use clove or nutmeg essential oils if you prefer.  Thank your helpers for all their help and enjoy!

Peace be with you,

Star Schipp