Black Bean Soup

I found this rich and flavorful black bean soup here. I just about doubled the spices- you will likely want to adjust based on personal tastes. Black beans are full of protein and fiber.While this soup may *taste* decadent (especially if you blend it up), it's pretty much guilt-free.

EVOO (about a tbsp or so)

4 large cloves garlic, minced

2 large-ish carrots, or 3 smaller carrots

2 ribs celery

1 medium onion

2 15oz cans black beans, rinsed and drained

1 3.5oz can green diced chiles

4 cups low-sodium beef broth (you can easily use a rich veggie broth here to make it vegetarian)

S&P

1 teaspoon chili powder

3/4 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspooon dry oregano leaves

1 bay leaf

Pour a round on EVOO into your stockpot. Add carrots, celery, onion, and garlic and saute 4-5 minutes until onions are soft and the veggies start to brown.

Add in the beans, chiles, broth, and spices. Simmer for 20-25 minutes until carrots are soft, remove the bay leaf. 

Before

After

I would have liked to keep the soup as-is, but with my soft food requirement, I had to blend it up. It was very tasty blended as well, so you could really go either way. I blended it into a smooth puree in batches using my trusty blender. Make sure if you do this that you leave the top loose to allow steam to escape so the blender doesn't blow up on you. That would really ruin the soup. 

The original site recommended several toppings such as crushed tortilla chips, cheese, etc. It also added lime at the end. I preferred adding a squeeze of lime juice to each individual serving and  topping each serving with a dollop of sour cream or unsweetened fat free greek yogurt- sometimes with a bit of chopped cilantro. I think this recipe would be great in the summer as well- maybe paired with a little avocado or mango salsa....

 

Not my best photo- I was reallllly in a hurry to start eating this....