Thriftism

With colder weather upon us once again, we are turning to hearty favorites like soups and stews. We especially like easy to cook recipes that are hearty, healthy, and save us some money in the process. One recipe that fits this bill perfectly is a black bean posole. This can be made in a crockpot or slow cooker and is packed with flavor. Posole or Pozole can be made as a vegan/vegetarian option or you have the option of adding meat to fill out your meal as desired. Posole cooks easily in this dump and go recipe saving you time and money by using pantry staples.  Watch the recipe in action: printable to letter size paper Embed

Copy of Copy of Rhubarb cheese cake by ashley rolland

Canned Beans Vs. Bagged (Dry) Beans Canned beans are convenient. They are already cooked and waiting to be used. However, they also are quite a bit more expensive and having soaring levels of sodium. You can cut down on the sodium by rinsing the canned beans, but why go through this effort when you can buy cheaper beans that have no added sodium. Dry beans are between $1-$2/pound at a typical grocery store, and can be as low as $0.55 when buying in bulk at a store like Sam's Club. While the grocery store cost might seem more expensive than the $0.70/can you can spend for ready to eat beans, but the quantities are hugely different. 1 can of beans gives you less than two cups of beans. One pound of dried beans gives you about 6 cups cooked. That means by buying dried beans you could be saving a minimum of $0.50/bag compared to buying cans. Depending on the type of bean, lentil, etc. you are buying this amount can increase quite a bit. It may not seem like much...