Week 8: Spicy black bean soup

After the lame post last week I wanted to make sure to have something new this week. The problem is we were out of town for a few days and Jamie is getting ready to go back to work and I am gearing up to "take over management" of our 7 month old turkey, Luca. So I was not sure if I could fit things in but then Epicurious came through for me. I was looking for a quick yummy lunch to make for the L-Train and found this Spicy Black Bean Soup (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Spicy-Black-Bean-Soup-350900).


This is a super simple recipe that took no time at all and was very yummy. The cool thing about this recipe is that with the exception of the jalapenos you would usually have all of the ingredients kicking around the house. If you are like us and have a jar of pickled jalapenos in the fridge then you are good to go anytime. 


The ingredients are 

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium white onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 fresh jalapeño (2 inches), seeded and minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 (19-ounces) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 cups water (I used veggie broth)
• 1 Turkish or 1/2 California bay leaf

Now comes the easy part. Heat the oil over medium-high heat until it shimmers then drop in the onions, garlic, jalapenos, chili powder, cumin and oregano. They call for 1/2 tsp of salt but I would not add this next time, I will why explain later. Heat this for 6-8 mins or until the onions begin to brown. Now I cooked mine a little too hot so I added a couple of tablespoons of broth to make sure things did not burn. Then add the beans, water (or broth), bay leaf cover and let simmer for 15 mins or so. The recipe then says take 2 cups of the soup and puree then add it back to the soup. This seemed stupid and time consuming for me so I just blended the whole thing and it was fine. I served the soup with some grated cheddar and some yummy roasted garlic and cheese bread from A Bread Affair (http://www.abreadaffair.com).


Mark's thoughts: The great thing about this soup is that it took longer to chop the couple of items then to actually make it, not including the simmering time. It yummy and I would have it again in a flash. My one complaint was that it was a little salty but that was my fault using the broth. I would use the broth again but I would not add the salt to the onion mixture.


Jamie's thoughts: Makes me like soup! Nice consistency, nice flavour. Two thumbs up.

Lisa's thoughts: Would like to have it again and wants the recipe even though she never cooks;-) Seemed easy to make and was tasty so a great combo.

Steaming spicy black bean soup topped with a little grated cheddar.