Chick, I LOVE your new avatar! I'm assuming that's one you made in honor of this month? You are so creative. Thanks for all of those links. I'm going to follow them and if I see something in particular for "getting back to basic" I'll post it here.

MA - I may try that Mushroom Soup first. I love mushrooms and that is such an easy recipe. I looked up HERBAMANE on the net and there are several good places to purchase it. I made sure that it was the original, when looking.

I'm not a big fan of garlic, but I'm going to stick with the recipe you gave.

I know I started this thread asking about recipes for homemade soups, etc., but I also wanted us to share tips on getting back to the basics.

I've thought about it and one tip I'll share is to get a library card if you don't have one. I tell ya, some weeks I just couldn't live without mine! If I want to rent a movie (FREE) I go the library. When we get ready to discuss a book choice here, I first see if the library has it. Another savings...

One more tip would be to buy generic brands at the grocery store. I cannot believe the cost different between some well-known brands and store labels. Holy cow! Now I'll add with a red face that I won't skip on the mayo...gotta have Helmans. GOT TO!

Anyone else with a tip to get back to the basics? Or maybe it's not really getting back to the basics, but cutting back on the cost of living and if you are getting back to the basics (called GBTB in the future to save typing) then all the better.

Orchid, I told mom I want a new wok for Christmas...

Another thing I would LOVE to have is a dehydrator. Anybody got one of those? If so, do you love it?