I have a beautiful lemon tree just outside my kitchen door and almost always have a bowl of lemons on the counter. To me, their citrus aroma shouts out freshness. If that were not enough good fortune, (I am very grateful for this lemon tree) I have two ridiculously large rosemary bushes in the yard. I snip a few sprigs every so often, rinse them (that seems to awaken their fragrance) and set them next to the lemons.
While recently browsing through a photo album of my mother and I in Sicily, I got a nostalgic whiff of the lemons and rosemary. I could almost smell the Sicilian countryside, all it needed was one more ingredient, fiori di Sicilia (flowers of Sicily).
The fresh fragrance of these ingredients, always brings a smile to my heart.
I don’t know if you are old enough to remember the “Calgon” commercials, (my mother used their iconic bath oil beads) but the slogan, “Calgon, Take me away,” was an advertisement not just for soap, but for an exhilarating bath and body experience that promises to take you (away) on a special journey (at least while you’re in the tub).
My scent of Sicily, restores the spirit and takes me away to my “special” place, overlooking the sea surrounding the Sicilian island, enjoying a bit of dolce, sipping a cappuccino. It’s my own inexpensive aromatherapy (Sicilian style) … and it refreshes the kitchen too.
Ingredients:
- 4 cups water
- 3 slices lemons
- 3 sprigs rosemary
- 1 teaspoon fiori di sicilia
- In a saucepan, combine the water, lemon slices, rosemary sprigs and the fiori di Sicilia. Simmer, on the stove and let the scent refresh your spirit as well as your kitchen. Add more water as needed.
