What's for Dinner? Spicy Black Bean Soup

Yeah, ok...so I'm into soups right now. It's February in Michigan. Need I say more?

While planning my meals this week I stumbled upon a picture of black bean soup and I knew I just HAD to make it. Plus, we are trying to reduce our grocery bill a little by adding in at least one vegetarian meal each week and this fits the bill: it's filling, nutritious, has adequate protein, warms the body and it's vegetarian.

In search of a good recipe I came across many online, but nothing quite seemed right (I felt like Goldilocks and the 3 Soup Recipes...one was too bland, one was too labor intensive, etc, etc.) until I found this Black Bean Soup recipe from The Novice Chef blog. The beautiful picture drew me in...

Spicy Black Bean Soup from TheNoviceChefBlog.com

and the recipe seemed totally doable on a weeknight AND sounded like it would taste good...and when she said the soup was "even ass friendly" I KNEW a chef with a sense of humor was worth a try!

Homemade Cleaning Supplies: Can They Cut Costs?

Is it worth it to make your own cleaning supplies? Before I embarked on the project of making my own, I needed to look into this a little more. To answer my question, I came up with 4 main criteria.


Does it save money?
Let's compare the prices. Here are some of the cleaning products I usually buy compared to the cost to make the alternative.

Shower Cleaner: Seventh Generation Shower Cleaner-Green Mandarin & Leaf, 32 oz, $3.99.
An alternative recipe: Use an old spray bottle from your commercial cleaner, then add 2 cups white vinegar + 2 Cups water (32oz total), $0.75 (on average) Ummm, yeah. Quite a difference.