If you’ve yet to meet warm, woody, and protective dōTERRA® Clove essential oil, now is the time! Clove in its dried form may very likely reside in your kitchen cupboard, adding its hot flavor to a variety of sweet and savory dishes; and if you’ve cooked with it, you know it possesses a powerfully spicy taste and aroma. These lingering sensations seem to imply that there’s more contained within these little buds than meets the eye, and indeed, there is.

The clove bud, which is named after a nail (clavus in Latin) because of its interesting shape, is as tough as the name implies. Clove buds grow on the large, flowering clove tree, which thrives in the tropical humidity of Madagascar and originally hailed from the Spice Islands of Indonesia. These little guys make it easy for harvesters: they turn a bright shade of red when they’re ready to be picked! Once the unopened, dried flower buds are harvested, the process of steam distillation extracts their essential oil, and dōTERRA Clove is born. Our buds have given their all at this point, and we’re about to find out what that means for us.

Clove’s unique chemical composition makes it all at once stimulating, energizing, and cleansing. Prized for centuries in India and China for its aromatic applications, specifically for cooking and perfumery, it became popular in Europe during the Middle Ages. In more recent years, Clove has become popular for cleansing teeth and promoting fresh breath, and it’s easy to see why! Add a drop to your toothpaste or gargle a drop with a few ounces of water, always being careful to dilute the potent hotness of Clove essential oil. When applying topically as part of a soothing massage, mix one drop of Clove oil with your favorite body lotion or with a sufficient amount of Fractionated Coconut Oil to help melt that stress away.

Clove blends well with citrus oils such as Lemon and Wild Orange, as well as with similarly woody oils including Frankincense and Cinnamon Bark. Use Clove to clear the air and bring the aroma of a cool, crisp autumn day indoors! Why not bake with this essential oil, too, letting its stimulating and spicy aroma fill the house as you whip up some pumpkin or gingerbread goodies?

Something to take note of when using any essential oil in the kitchen is that mixing it with an olive or other oil (or another liquid) will help to evenly disperse flavor throughout the dish. As a general rule, baking tends to require more essential oil flavoring than cooking; for example, a couple mere toothpick dips of oil might be sufficient for a sauce, whereas you may need a couple drops of oil to flavor a baked good such as bread. Here’s a helpful substitution rule for Clove and other oils like it: 1 teaspoon dried herbs = 1 tablespoon fresh herbs = 1 drop dōTERRA.

Let’s not neglect to mention that Clove supports healthy digestion and leaves your insides feeling happier on multiple levels when incorporated into your cooking and baking routines! And let’s also sneak in one final use to this growing and diverse list: spray Clove essential oil, mixed with water, into your garden area to help keep tiny, pesky invaders at bay. There we have it! Warm, invigorating Clove is about to become our new best bud in spicing up our favorite holiday recipes and invigorating our home environments. Spicy and clean, Clove is a wellness boost that’s just one hot drop away.