I found this recipe in a recent issue of ALL YOU magazine and it looked easy, frugal, and delicious. Exactly my kind of recipe. 
Honestly, I was not expecting this recipe to be as delicious as it turned out to be. I thought it would be yummy, but I didn’t expect it be one of those major winner recipes.
Jesse was out with Kaitlynn at her ice skating practice last night and when he walked in the door, his first remark was, “That smells so good.” And it did.
But it tasted even better than it smelled! In fact, I wanted to eat it straight from the soup pot.
Jesse kept commenting as he was eating it last night, “This is such a great recipe.” I totally agreed.
What surprised me most of all was that our kids loved it, too. They even asked if they could please eat the leftovers today.
It’s a simple recipe and it’s packed with good-for-you ingredients. If you wanted to kick it up a notch, you could add some hot sauce or salsa to it.
I also think it’d be great served with some crushed tortilla chips, cheese, sour cream, and sliced avocado. If you have a family who isn’t really into meatless meals, you could add some cooked chopped chicken.
Black Bean Soup
Adapted slightly from ALL YOU magazine
- 1 1/2 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and diced
- 4 carrots, diced
- 3 ribs celery, thinly sliced
- 1 Tablespoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 4 15-oz. cans black beans, drained and rinsed (you can also make your own recipe-ready black beans)
- Salt and pepper
Saute onion, garlic, pepper, carrots, and celery in oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally and cook until softened. Add chili powder and cumin and saute for a few more minutes.
Stir in broth and beans and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 25 minutes. Stir occasionally.
Remove a few cups of the soup and puree in a blender. Stir pureed soup back into the soup, season with salt and pepper, and simmer for about 5 more minutes.
Serves 6.
Looking for a way to earn some extra income? Mystery shopping might be a great option for you!
When we were first married, I did a lot of mystery shopping. And while it was sometimes tedious work, there were also many fun opportunities — like beauty shops, expensive restaurants that we would have never been able to afford to eat at otherwise, fast food restaurants, and more!
There are many different reputable mystery shopping companies out there that you can apply to work with. One such company is MSI Services/TrendSource and they are recruiting right now, specifically for grocery store mystery shop projects. Here’s what they emailed me about this opportunity:
MSI Services/TrendSource is recruiting Independent Field Agents to participate in Unrevealed Mystery Shop Projects at local grocery stores. An Independent Field Agent is an independent contractor who is paid to anonymously complete an evaluation and inspection of a local business based on specific criteria.
Independent Field Agents pose as regular customers while performing their evaluation. After the project is complete, Independent Field Agents submit their collected data through an online evaluation form.
A typical evaluation looks for the following information:
- Counting the number of associates in each department.
- Evaluating whether associates actively engage with customers.
- Reporting how associates engage with customers.
- Reporting how associates respond to specific questions.
Becoming a mystery shopper is a great way to get reimbursed for your groceries. MSI Services/TrendSource pays agents twice monthly for their projects. Independent Field Agents spend approximately 30 minutes on-site.
Are you interested in applying for this opportunity? Head over to MSI Services/TrendSource to learn more and apply to become an Independent Field Agent today!
{Note: This post was underwritten by TrendSource. Read our disclosure policy here.}
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