Crock Pot Minestrone Soup

The other day was a rainy, cloudy, need-something-to-warm-me-up kind of day.  The kind of day where you want to wear sweatpants and snuggle under a blanket while reading a good book.  Oh, and did I also mention that it’s still summer?  Yeah, the weather in Utah can be really unpredictable sometimes.

So I decided to make the best of it and pull out one of my favorite recipes: Crock Pot Minestrone Soup.  I wish I could say that I made up this recipe and take all the credit for the yumminess that it is, but I’d be lying and that is generally frowned upon…  The truth is that I found the recipe on Pinterest on a blog called Yummy Healthy Easy who adapted it from another blog (Foodtography).

I really like this recipe for a few reasons:

• It is a good no-meat alternative.
• It's easy.
• It's healthy and filling.
• It doesn't heat up my house in the summer months.
• It uses ingredients that I typically have around my house so I'm not running to the store for something random.

Sauteed Onion Bean Dip

This oh-so-delicious bean dip is super easy and every single member of my family loves it! That's right--even the three-year-old.

Start with a layer of beans. I don't spray my pan because that makes it harder to spread the beans, but if you want to, it won't hurt.