Something really exciting happened this week.
I received my first delivery from Front Door Organics! They deliver local organic produce to your doorstep for a fair price, and I’ve been dying to order my own for years now.
There were so many goodies in the box I don’t know where to begin. Squash, apples, pears, leeks, parsley, swiss chard and spinach…the list goes on…
The colours were bright and reminded me off Fall. They tied right in with my birthday bouquet!
I decided to slow cook a soup using my eleven bean soup mix I bought recently from Whole Foods last month.
As much as I adored this mix, you can easily make this yourself using a mix of dried beans (soak them over night) and a bouquet garni (mix of herbs like bay leaf and sage tied together).
There was a recipe on the back of the soup but I took my own route with what I had on hand. The secret to great budget cooking is using what you have. So if you ever follow one of my recipes – please substitute! There’s no need to spend a fortune at the grocery store when you can come up with a cheaper, possibly more delicious rendition yourself!
I boiled my beans in vegetable broth then threw them in the slow cooker with onion and garlic and some extra water for around 6 hours. Near the end, I added some chopped spinach and swiss chard from my Front Door Organics box. I also threw in some grilled local lamb sausage I defrosted from the freezer, but this is optional!
I topped it all off with some fresh cilantro (also from my box) and parmesan (I keep a baggie in my freezer so it stays fresh).
It was a great dinner and did us around two more meals afterwards. I may or may not have had the last of it for breakfast this morning! Yes, it’s that good!
- Soup pack or mixed dried beans + bouquet garnit
- 1 box vegetable broth
- 3 cups of water
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 tsp chili
- 1 tbsp ketchup
- salt
- Handful of chopped spinach
- Handful of chopped swiss chard
- 2 lamb sausages, grilled + sliced
- Optional: top with parmesan and cilantro
- Unless directed not to, soak beans over night and rinse.
- Bring to a boil with a box of vegetable broth, then either bring to a simmer or add to you crockpot.
- Simmer some garlic and onion in your pot or add to slow cooker.
- Cook on med-low for 2-3 hours on the stove or add to your crockpot for 6 hours.
- Add as much water as you desire.
- Add spices and seasonings.
- Near the end of your cook time, add spinach and swiss chard (and sausage optional).
- Top with cilantro and parmesan (optional).
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
yay! it’s so exciting to get deliveries like that
This looks delicious! Fall is my favorite time for local bounty- squash galore!
xoxo