Introduction

I love black bean soup – it's nutritious, hearty, and has a bit of a zing. The ingredient list is long, but once you have everything ready, it's not too difficult to make the soup.

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large red onion (chopped)
• 3 ribs celery with greens (chopped)
• 4 cloves garlic (minced or crushed with a press)
• 1 jalapeno pepper (seeded and chopped)
• 1 fresh bay leaf or 1 large dried bay leaf
• 1 red bell pepper (seeded and chopped)
• 3 cups of cooked black beans or 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans
• 2 Tbsp ground cumin
• 1 ½ tsp ground coriander
• 2 to 3 Tbsp hot sauce (Frank's Red Hot or similar)
• 1 quart chicken or vegetable stock
• 3 juicy/soft tomatoes (chopped)
• ½ lemon or lime
• Cilantro and parsley to taste
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Heat a medium-sized soup pot over medium-high heat.

2. Add olive oil, then onion, celery, garlic, jalapeno, and bay leaf. Cook 3-4 minutes.

3. Add red pepper and continue to cook.

4. Add beans and stir.

5. Season with cumin, coriander, hot sauce, salt and pepper.

6. Add stock and tomatoes and bring to a boil.

7. Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes over low heat.

8. Squeeze half a lemon/lime and add the cilantro and/or parsley.

9. Remove and discard the bay leaf.

Makes 3-5 servings.

Photo by Marco Verch, licensed under Creative Commons BY 2.0