Meatless Mondays: Black Bean Soup

Mar. 19, 2012

7:17 p.m.

The following is a recipe for a quick black bean soup, adapted from this. There's not a lot of prep work, and there are only two steps. Plus, you can totally chill out while it's cooking. Except for the occasional stir.

Basically, it's the perfect recipe for a Monday night. And it happens to be meatless—vegan, even.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 green onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 pinch black pepper
4 cups vegetable broth
4 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed (can substitute with 1 lb. dry black beans, soaked overnight and simmered the following day)
2 cups frozen corn
1 (14.5 ounce) can crushed tomatoes or 6-8 medium tomatoes, peeled and crushed with liquid retained

rDirections:

Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Saute onion, celery, carrots and garlic for 5 minutes. Season with chili powder, cumin, and black pepper; cook for 1 minute. Stir in vegetable broth, 2 cans of beans, and corn. Bring to a boil.
Meanwhile, in a food processor or blender, process remaining 2 cans beans and tomatoes until smooth. Stir into boiling soup mixture, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 15 minutes.