recipe review: black bean soup

Is it weird that I LOVE black bean soup? I was really excited when I saw a recipe on my favorite cooking website, For the Love of Cooking. It is really, really good. Very flavorful. It had such a nice creaminess it was hard to believe there was no dairy. I don’t own an immersion blender, so I scooped out as much as I could into my regular blender. I actually enjoyed that there were a few hearty bites of vegetables remaining.

Black Bean Soup, courtesy For the Love of Cooking website

• 1 tsp olive oil
• 3/4 sweet yellow onion, diced
• 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 carrots, diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
• 5 cups of chicken stock OR vegetable stock (I used chicken)
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 14 oz cans of black beans, rinsed & drained, (divided)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1-2 tbsp corn starch (combined with a bit of cold stock – mixed thoroughly) (optional)

Heat olive oil in a dutch oven over medium heat. Once hot add onion, bell pepper and carrots, saute until slightly tender. Add garlic and stir frequently for 45 seconds. Add stock, seasonings and half of the beans. Cook over medium low heat for 1-2 hours. Remove bay leaf, and blend using an immersion blender. Add the remainder of the beans and corn starch slurry if you desire a thicker soup (make sure the soup is boiling when adding the corn starch). Taste and re-season if necessary.

• Cilantro, chopped
• Cotija cheese, shredded (optional … I substituted avocado.)

Garnish the soup with toppings. Enjoy.