Meatless Meals: Instant Pot Black Bean Soup (a no-recipe recipe)

I have to admit, I'm generally a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants sort of cook. I love looking at recipes for inspiration, but when it comes down to it? I'll happily make all the substitutions I want, do my own thing, and I'm almost always happy with the result! So if you're a "must-have-exact-quantities-or-my-life-will-explode" sort of cook? This is probably not for you!!

BUT if you're comfortable (or want to get comfortable) improvising in the kitchen, this should be a good starting point for you!

It's not picturesque. Soup never is. But it's delicious!

This "recipe" was really borne of the conundrum, "I have too many random vegetables from my produce box, insatiable children who adore soup, and hey, dried beans are cheap!" And it has quickly become a staple in our house!

(No instant pot? Try these slow cooker black beans! Add extra broth and it'll be plenty for soup!)

Just Because, Volume 6

Monday again! We are due for some unseasonably warm weather this week and I cannot wait. I'm feeling just about done with winter, but I have to remind myself that even though March is coming up and feels like it should be spring weather, it takes us until solid April/May to really get there.

Lucy, Age 2

Family Catechesis at Home: Through the Year with Jesus Giveaway

Lent is almost here! (Or maybe you're reading this late, in which case... I hope your Lent is sufficiently penitential and spiritually enriching!) If you haven't already solidified your family's plans, I've got an idea for you:

 

Katie is a religion teacher and an absolute gift to the Church - if you've never read her blog, please don't miss it! She has an abundance of resources for living the liturgical year whether you're homeschooling, trying to add to your religious education at home, or teaching CCD at your parish. And now, she's published a book!

 

Just Because: Volume 5

Happy Monday, and happy almost-Lent! Our weather lately has felt sufficiently Lenten, so I think we're all ready for simple meals, praying the Stations of the Cross, and adding some extra sacrifices to our days. 

I'm working on a second volume of my ever-popular meatless meals for Lent post and would love to see your suggestions in the comments to give me some inspiration! I've got a couple recipes I really need to get written down to share with you all, because we've added some staples to our repertoire since I wrote that first post back in 2014.

5/52: Baby Doll Beards, Roller Flailing, and House Plants

 

Just Because: Volume 4

Happy Monday! A quick reminder that February is the shortest month, and soon it will be Lent (Speaking of which, here are all my helpful links for Lent in one place!) and then it will be Easter and then warm weather has to be on the horizon, right? Flowers! Sunshine! My apologies to those of you in Canada and the like, who have so much longer to wait than others of us...

4/52: Nativity Tableau

3/52: Nugget!

Just Because: Volume 3

Happy February!! I'm so excited to read what you write this week! We're enjoying our first big(ish) snow of 2021, complete with popcorn and hot chocolate. Very important fun to be had!