Black Bean Soup

Total Time: 15 hrs Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 14 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 1 1/2 cups dried black beans
• 4 1/2 cups water
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 large carrot, chopped
• 3 slices bacon, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 5 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 1/4 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 cups chicken stock, to taste
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped or 1/4 cup fresh parsley

Recipe

• 1 put beans in a large bowl and add enough cold water to cover by 3 inches.
• 2 let soak overnight.
• 3 in morning, drain and rinse beans.
• 4 place beans in a heavy pot.
• 5 add 4 1/2 cups water and next 7 ingredients.
• 6 bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer.
• 7 simmer, stirring occasionally, until beans are tender (about 1 hour 10 minutes).
• 8 puree at least 1/2 mixture in blender with 2 cups chicken broth.
• 9 how much of the mixture you puree will determine how much texture the soup has.
• 10 return soup to pot and season to taste with salt and pepper.
• 11 stir in chopped cilantro.
• 12 this soup cam be nade a day ahead, covered, and stored in the refrigerator.
• 13 reheat soup to a simmer, adding more chicken broth if the soup is too thick.
• 14 this soup is good by itself, but is outstanding in the same bowl as the cheddar cheese soup described in dave's black and soup#4505.
• 15 serve with a salad and herb bread (i like garden herb bread#50830) and you have a meal fit for company.