Day 21: Black Bean Soup

After the week of heavy-on-the-meat meals, I was ready yesterday for something meatless.  This soup was easy to make, smelled delicious while cooking all day, and was nice to serve in a variety of ways at the same table!

Yesterday was a chilly day by Texas standards, but our cozy little house was warm, and it was lovely to smell the yummy comforting aroma of this soup cooking throughout the day.  I was free in the afternoon to snuggle on the couch with my younger children and read books--dinner was already done!  We read a book about manners, and in the book was a section on how to set the table properly.  So my 5-year-old helper, Simeon, wanted to help me set the table once we were finished reading.  That's all there was to last night's meal prep after the 20 minutes of getting it into the pot in the morning!  This is why I've been lovin' the 30 day crockpot challenge!!

The photo above is the soup in my "old-faithful" crockpot I've had almost 18 years (wedding gift).  See how colorful it looks!

Black Bean Soup 

Serves 6

(I doubled the recipe and froze a large container's worth of leftovers)

1 lb. bag dry black beans

2 10-oz. cans Rotel tomatoes

1 medium onion, chopped

1 medium green bell pepper, chopped (I used 1 red and 1 orange bell pepper--colorful!)

1 Tbsp. minced garlic

14 1/2 oz. can chicken of vegetable broth

Water (to cover beans)

Cajun seasoning to taste (I used cumin instead, and it turned out well)

1.  Night before cooking:  Cover beans with water and soak for 8 hours or overnight.  OR: use quick-soak method--cover beans with 2-3 inches of water, bring to a boil for 10 minutes, then remove from heat and let stand, covered for 1 hour (I usually do this method and things turn out perfect). Drain well.  Place beans in slow cooker.

2.  Add tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, garlic, and chicken or vegetable broth.  Add water just to cover beans.  Add Cajun or other seasoning to taste.

3. Cover.  Cook on high 8 hours.  Mash some of the beans before serving for a thicker consistency.  

4. Serving suggestions:  

*over rice  

*on tortillas like tacos

*with tortilla chips, sour cream, guacamole and cheese like a taco soup

Today is Nina's 11th birthday, and she has requested a family favorite: Poppy Seed Chicken, which I don't make in the crockpot.  So my crocking for the day is a breakfast casserole: Western Omelet Casserole.  We will soon see how everyone likes it, and I will post about it, along with the recipe, tomorrow morning.