Black Bean Soup

This soup is total comfort food for me.  It's warm, my favorite flavors, and good no matter what time of day you eat it!  It's weird, but I really think I'd be happy eating it for breakfast.  Actually, I think I'll make it again tonight.  Here in Portland we've been having such a happy winter/almost spring, but today is looking like you would guess it would: cloudy, windy, kinda cold, and about to rain.  July 4th is the beginning of the no rain season, so we have a while yet.

Another good part of this recipe is that there are SO many different ways to make it.  If you just have 5 minutes, add your drained and rinsed beans with some broth and salsa and you're ready to eat once it's heated.  I hope this becomes your new go-to recipe, you'll love it!

Black Bean Soup

1 onion

4 cloves of garlic

1 Tbsp ground cumin (or more to taste)

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

3-4 cans black beans (6-7 cups), rinsed and drained
1 1/2 cups water + 2 tsp vegetable or chicken stock bullion OR 1 1/2 cups stock (add more or less to achieve your desired soup thickness)
2-3 cups chunky salsa
2 Tbsp lime juice

I've also added these extras:
(adapted from Simply Recipes)
2 chopped peppers - choose between bell peppers, anaheim, or jalepeño (depending on what you want for heat) - seed, stems, and ribs discarded
1 Tbsp oregano
3 Tbsp orange juice concentrate
salt to taste
chopped fresh cilantro for garnish

In a large pot, sauté onion until tender, add garlic, cumin, and crushed red pepper and stir for another minute.  Pureé 2 cans of beans with 1/2 cup of stock until smooth.  Add all beans to the pot.  Add stock, salsa, and lime juice.  Adjust the amount of stock/water until the soup is the consistency you like.

If you want to add the extras: Add the chopped peppers to the pot when you are sautéing the onion.  Add the rest when you add the beans to the pot.