Make this conifer infused oil this winter season using foraged conifer needles! Most conifer needles can be used such as pine, spruce, or fir. This conifer infused oil with cinnamon is great for body care and it also has some aromatherapy benefits. It smells absolutely amazing!
Collect a few branches of conifer needles, then let them sit for a day or two to dry off any moisture that may be on the surface.
Use scissors to cut the conifer branches into one inch pieces, then gently pack them into a Ball® Pint Jar. Add a whole cinnamon stick to the jar if you’d like (optional, but recommended).
Pour extra virgin olive oil into the jar to cover the conifer needles. The conifer needles sometimes tend to float or stick out of the oil. Try to push them under the oil as best as you can, but they may still pop back up.
Cover the jar tightly, preferably with a Ball® Leak-Proof Storage Lid, and give it a few gentle shakes to make sure everything is coated in oil. Open the jar again and push all of the needles down under the oil as best as you can.
Store the jar in a cool place out of direct sunlight for 2-3 weeks or longer (up to 6 weeks), shaking every few days and pushing any stray needles back under the oil.
After the conifer oil has finished infusing, strain out the needles with a fine mesh sieve. Let the conifer needles and cinnamon sit in the strainer for a few minutes so that all of the infused oil has a chance to drip out.
Notes
Most species of conifer needles can be used in this recipe, including pine, spruce, fir, Douglas-fir, and hemlock (the evergreen tree, not poison hemlock the toxic herbaceous plant).
Please note that the Yew family of trees is highly toxic and should not be used.
For more information on which trees are good to use and which you should avoid, see my post on identifying conifer trees.
Conifer needles don’t contain a lot of moisture, so it’s not necessary to make sure they are completely dried out before using. Keeping them somewhat fresh also preserves their aromatherapy benefits!