Rev: Smokey Black Bean & Vegetable Soup (J/F, 2003)

[Ralph]

YUM!!!

Not difficult to put together at all, just has to cook for a while (2 hours simmering). Very hearty, likely due to the combination of 3 cans of beans, then the pureed portion mixed back in. It wasn't particularly spicy hot, but I tried to remove as many of the chipotle seeds as possible; obviously, you can adjust the heat to your taste.

And if you don't want it to be strictly vegetarian, I'm sure some ground poultry/meat would be fine. So would chopped or shredded cooked chicken, but I wouldn't add it until the last 5-10 minutes of cooking.

[honeygirl1971]

Thanks for the review, Ralph, that sounds like a good one! :)

[SueK]

Ralph (or any other kind person :)), could I trouble you to post this recipe? I don't have much hope my new CL will arrive in the next few days....TIA!

[mochadelsol]

Ditto on the request, pretty please. This has caught my intrest.

TIA
linda

[gertdog]

Ralph, thanks for the review! This sounds like it's right up my alley. I need a good soup for next week's menu; this week's soup was a bit of a disappointment (split pea with pasta). This soup sounds like it will fill the bill!

[JackieO]

I brought my mag along to the office today (didn't get finished with it last night!)

Smokey Black Bean and Vegetable Soup

1 7-oz can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
Cooking spray
2 C. coarsely chopped onion
1 C. chopped carrot
3/4 C. thinly sliced celery
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp chili powder
2 bay leaves
2 C. water
3 15-oz cans black beans, rinsed and drained
2 14-1/2 oz cans no-salt added plum tomatoes, undrained and chopped
1/2 C. plain nonfat yogurt
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
8 lime wedges

1) Remove 2 chiles from can; reserve remainer for another use. Finely chop chiles. Heat a large Dutch oven coated w/cooking spray over med high heat. Add onion, carrot celery and garlic; saute 8 minutes or until onion and carrot are tender. Stir in chiles, cumin, basil, oregano, chili powder and bay leaves; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in water, beans, broth and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Partially cover, reduce heat, and simmer 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

2) Remove from heat; discard bay leaves. Place 3 C. of soup mixture in a blender. Let stand 5 mins; process until smooth. Return pureed mixture to pan, stirring to combine. Ladle 1-1/4 C. soup into each of 8 bowls; top each serving with 1 T yogurt and 1-1/2 tsp cilantro. Serve with lime wedges.


Yield: 8 servings

162 calories; 1 g fat (0.1 g sat; 0.1 g poly; 0.1 mono) 10.1 g protein; 36.9 g carb; 10.9 g fiber; 0 mg chol; 3.8 mg iron; 740 mg sodium; 145 mg calc.

Whew....typos and all.

This sounds delish -- I might make it tonight for tomorrow night's dinner!

[penguin]

Wow, this is really similar to the Black Bean & Chipotle soup discussed here:
http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=35240

I think I will have to try it later this month. It looks more beany than the other one which is what I was hoping for. :D

[SueK]

Thanks, Jackie for posting this! I think this is going to go on the menu for this week!
Sue

[mochadelsol]

Thanks Jackie what a gal:D

[JackieO]

Originally posted by SueK
Thanks, Jackie for posting this! I think this is going to go on the menu for this week!
Sue
Stay tuned.....:D

I made this last night for tonight's dinner (DS has BB practice so I need something that I can just heat up). When I added the chiles to the saute'd vegetables, DS came downstairs and said, "Smells good, Mom." (This is a high compliment from a 13-y/o!;) ). I sampled it before putting it in the 'fridge last night, and I think it's going to be simply wonderful! (And I of course added a chopped up ham slice so I could avoid the "There's-no-meat-in-here" issue tonight.):p

[JackieO]

Originally posted by Ralph
YUM!!!

Not difficult to put together at all, just has to cook for a while (2 hours simmering). Very hearty, likely due to the combination of 3 cans of beans, then the pureed portion mixed back in. It wasn't particularly spicy hot, but I tried to remove as many of the chipotle seeds as possible; obviously, you can adjust the heat to your taste.

And if you don't want it to be strictly vegetarian, I'm sure some ground poultry/meat would be fine. So would chopped or shredded cooked chicken, but I wouldn't add it until the last 5-10 minutes of cooking.
I agree with Ralph -- the chipotles give this a really deep, spicy flavor without a whole lot of heat. I love spicy food but get turned off very quickly by "firey" food (fiery food?:( ). I studiously avoided he seeds as well.

I think there was someone on the January soup thread who planned on making this when he DH (aka: the bean-hater) was out town. My DH is a bean-hater as well, but he liked this!!

I'm thinking of using this as the base for my annual entry into our neighborhood association chili cook-off. I'll make the soup as is, and in a separate pot (or maybe crockpot), cook up a roast with a can of tomatoes, a chipotle or two and some of the same seasonings, combine all the night before and take it to the contest. I think it would stand out in the crowd.

[gymbrat75]

I made this soup last night for dinner - it was excellent. It would definitely not be the same w/out the chipoltes (sp?).

I served it with cheese quesidilla (sp?) and a glass of red wine - a perfect dinner for dreary west-coast sunday night.

[LauraBL]

I made this yesterday. I even cooked a pound of black beans for this recipe and that seemed to work out just about right. I'm not sure what a true equivalent would be for canned beans to dried or vice versa, since the ounces on the can also include the bean syrupy juice. I even cheated and had a small bowl before the 2 hour simmering time was up. Now to just remember to get on the stick and use up the leftovers from the can of chipotles in adobo sauce! Perhaps the sour cream sauce from the Snapper tacos on the "fish" article in Sept?

Laura

[penguin]

Originally posted by LauraBL
[B]Now to just remember to get on the stick and use up the leftovers from the can of chipotles in adobo sauce! Perhaps the sour cream sauce from the Snapper tacos on the "fish" article in Sept?

I don't know if you are interested, but you can freeze the remaining chipotles. I put a few peppers in a small ziploc bag with a few teaspoons of adobo sauce. They should keep for about 6 months this way.

[gymbrat75]

i'm always mixing the chipoltes with sour cream - i serve it on potatoes or with raw veggies as a dip. It's so good. I've mixed it with mayo and used it as a spread on a sandwich.

[LauraBL]

Good idea Penquin. I think I've frozen the whole glob in the past and then it was hard to get out one pepper. Individually sounds like a good way to go.

gymbrat75- I'm glad to hear you also like the sour cream chipotle(in adobo sauce) combo. It does make a great dip and would be awesome on a baked potato.

[Peggy]

I made this for dinner tonight. Since we don't like things too spicy at our house, I only used one chipolte chili. Unfortunately, I was in a hurry and used it seeds and all. Our soup was definately on the spicy side! My DD said this was the first time her cheeks sweat when she ate something!:p Excellent flavors, but next time no seeds for us!

Peggy

[catbatty]

First post to this board (hello all -- I *love* this place and you all are so nice and helpful.. I am now addicted to being here!!) I hope I'm doing my post here correctly.

Thanks to JackieO for typing the Smokey Black Bean and Vegetable Soup...but I noticed that the 2 cans of vegetable broth mentioned in the magazine were not included in the recipe above and while I was putting recipe into MC format for myself...I thought I'd post the corrected recipe:



* Exported from MasterCook *

Smokey Black Bean and Vegetable Soup

Recipe By :Cooking Light magazine, Jan/Feb, 2003
Serving Size : 8 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce -- (7 oz)
cooking spray
2 cups coarsely chopped onion
1 cup chopped carrot
3/4 cup thinly sliced celery
4 cloves garlic -- minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 bay leaves
2 cups water
3 cans black beans -- (15 oz ea) rinsed and drained
2 cans vegetable broth -- (14-1/2 oz each)
2 cans no-salt added plum tomatoes -- (14-1/2 oz ea) undrained and chopped
1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
8 lime wedges

1) Remove 2 chiles from can; reserve remainer for another use. Finely chop chiles. Heat a large Dutch oven coated w/cooking spray over med high heat. Add onion, carrot celery and garlic; saute 8 minutes or until onion and carrot are tender. Stir in chiles, cumin, basil, oregano, chili powder and bay leaves; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in water, beans, broth and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Partially cover, reduce heat, and simmer 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

2) Remove from heat; discard bay leaves. Place 3 cups of soup mixture in a blender. Let stand 5 minutes; process until smooth. Return pureed mixture to pan, stirring to combine. Ladle 1-1/4 cups soup into each of 8 bowls; top each serving with 1 tablespoon yogurt and 1-1/2 teaspoon cilantro. Serve with lime wedges.

Yield: 8 servings

162 calories (6% from fat); 1 g fat (0.1 g sat; 0.1 g poly; 0.1 g mono) 10.1 g protein; 36.9 g carb; 10.9 g fiber; 0 mg chol; 3.8 mg iron; 740 mg sodium; 145 mg calc.


"This was my great grandma's recipe, and my mom passed it along to me. Canned vegetable broth saves time, and the soup freezes well." ~ Lisa Rebelli, Oakland, Ca.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

[Peggy]

Good eyes, catbatty!! And welcome to the BB!:D

Peggy

[gymbrat75]

Thanks for the recipe correction. When i made the soup i noticed in the instructions that it required broth to be added but there was not broth listed in the ingredients. I just left it out and added a little bit of salt. It was still delicous.

I still haven't rec'd my Jan/Feb issue so i really appreciate it when these recipes are posted on the BB.

Thanks everyone!!

d

[JackieO]

Originally posted by catbatty
First post to this board (hello all -- I *love* this place and you all are so nice and helpful.. I am now addicted to being here!!) I hope I'm doing my post here correctly.

Thanks to JackieO for typing the Smokey Black Bean and Vegetable Soup...but I noticed that the 2 cans of vegetable broth mentioned in the magazine were not included in the recipe above and while I was putting recipe into MC format for myself...I thought I'd post the corrected recipe:


Whoops! Thanks for keeping me honest, and welcome to the boards. Soon you'll be an addict just like the rest of us!;)

[catbatty]

YES! A winner! I made this tonight, too. LOVE IT! I am like JackieO - I like spicy...even hot...but don't like dishes that give fire and wipe out all the other flavors. This soup is perfect. Nice flavor and oooh, the house smells so good.

I used one very large chili...and I used chicken broth instead of veg broth. (And I doubled the chili powder and at the end of the cooking, I added salt and pepper.) Very nice flavor. I've never put chipotles in the chili bean soup I make that is very similar to this recipe. I don't even much care for chipotles. But I think they MAKE the taste of this soup. A keeper. YUM YUM AND YUM. :D ~ Brenda

[LynnSC]

I made this soup for dinner last night. We all loved it! I served it with the rustic white bread. I didn't do such a good job on the bread , but it was eaten. Tonight I am making the baked potatoe soup for the hundreth time and made bread in the bread machine. ;) Oh, I did add some venison sausage just because we had some leftover from breakfast Sunday morning. I think it would be just as good without the meat!

[kristalsnow7]

I made this soup over the weekend, and thought it was very yummy. I like pretty spicy food, so added one more chile (seeds and all) and used "fire-roasted" diced tomatoes. I also added a bit more garlic ;) and used fat-free sour cream instead of the yogurt. It was very heart-warming---just what I needed in this subzero weather!

Kristal

[catbatty]

Yum, Lynn...baked potato soup and bread? Got recipes? <salivating>

About that Smokey Black Bean Soup -- a mom on a recipe list I belong to made the soup...and in an effort to make it good for little kids, she says that she didn't add the chili powder and she only added one chipotle chili. She says they all *loved* the soup and that it wasn't too spicy or hot, then, for the kids. (I'm betting that she slightly reduced all the spices and let that chipotle chili do most of the flavoring...but she didn't say that.) She thought it so NOT over-spiced that she even recommended it for a gal recuperating from a liver transplant...the gal is having problems with things being either too spicy (body can't handle) or too bland.

Kristal - me too. We sound like we have similar taste. Wanta come over? :)

I was very sorry when we finished the soup off. I think I could eat it every day. ~ Brenda (in love with beans - in love with spicy)

[santacruzin]

I realize that my son & husband are hearty eaters, so I will need to double this next time, and also add an extra Chipotle pepper. I loved it, it was great having a spicy meal with just veggies and black beans. I served cornbread with it and I will make it again soon.

[ElinorC]

We loved this soup! It's very hearty and has a great flavor. Since we like our soups rather chunky, I didn't puree any of it and the consistency was just right for us. Definitely a repeater.

[LaurenP]

Loved this soup, I added diced potatoes (2) and forgot the blending part. Excellent, although a bit spicey since I didn't know to take out the pepper seeds! (I will next time)

[catharine]

Add another thumbs up to the tally. This was really great and not too complicated to throw together. I was able to do lots of other cooking tasks while it cooked. I think this would work well in the crock pot.

[catbatty]

I made the soup again yesterday and we inhaled it. This time I added more chipotles... and also, I had some canned Mexi-Corn in fridge, so I added a few handfuls of drained corn. I'm going to always do that in the future because I think that enchanced the soup.

Upon serving, I added a bit of finely diced purple onion...and a bit of shredded cheddar. YEOW! It's so good.

PS: I don't puree it, either. I am so in love with this soup, I can't wait to serve it to company. ~ Brenda :p

[catharine]

I love the corn idea - I am going to add some to my leftovers.

You guys should really try pureeing it - you still have lots of texture and big chunks, but you get a nice thick (but not too thick) background. I would be interested to hear what someone who has tried it both ways thinks.

[LynnSC]

Catbatty,
I just saw your post. I found the Baked Potato Soup recipe posted by someone else and copied it. It came from the Oct. 2002 issue. It is a favorite in our family. I don't have the Rustic White bread recipe. It is from the Jan/Feb 2002. I hope you enjoy the soup!
Lynn
Baked Potato Soup

4 baking potatoes (about 2 1/2 pounds)
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
6 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
1 cup (4 ounces) reduced-fat shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese, divided
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 cup reduced-fat sour cream
3/4 cup chopped green onions, divided
6 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled

1. Preheat oven to 400.
2. Pierce potatoes with a fork; bake at 400 for 1 hour or until tender. Cool. Peel potatoes; coarsely mash. Discard skins.
3. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Place flour in a large Dutch oven; gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until blended. Cook over medium heat until thick and bubble (about 8 minutes). Add mashed potatoes, 3/4 cup cheese, salt, and pepper, stirring until cheese melts. Remove from heat.
4. Stir in sour cream and 1/2 cup onions. Cook over low heat 10 minutes or until thouroughly heated (do not boil). Sprinkle each serving with cheese, onions, and bacon. Yield: 8 servings (serving size: about 1 1/2 cups soup, 1 1/2 tsp cheese, 1 1/2 tsp onions, and about 1 Tb bacon).

CALORIES: 329 (30% from fat); FAT 10.8g (sat 5.9g, mono 3.5g, poly 0.7g); PROTEIN 13.6g: CARB 44.5g; FIBER 2.8g; CHOL 38mg; IRON 1.1mg; SODIUM 587mg; CALC 407mg

[catbatty]

Lynn, this sounds SO good. Thanks much for getting this recipe for me. ~ Brenda

[LaurenP]

I froze about half of the pot and we had it last night,It froze well, except for the potatoes I had added to the reciept, they get kind of mushy. I love a two night meal!
(I'm refering to the smokey veg bean soup,not the potatoe soup)

I will try the blended version next time, the recommendation makes it sound so good.

[LHBryan]

I made the smokey black bean and vegetable soup yesterday and it's excellent!! I accidentally used chicken broth instead of veggie broth (I was pulling cans out of the pantry to get to the veggie broth, then somehow ended up opening the wrong cans) and I added about a cup of frozen diced ham that I had leftover from the holidays. I did not puree any of the soup b/c I'd used crushed tomatoes, so it was already less chunky. Aside from those alterations, I followed the recipe exactly--including the yogurt, lime, and cilantro garnish. It is sooo good! I avoided most of the chipotle seeds and it was just the right amount of spice for us, but we're fairly spice tolerant. The yogurt definitely tones it down if needed. I can't wait to dig in to the leftovers for lunch!

[catbatty]

I made the Smokey Black Bean Soup again tonight! This time I used some canned pinto beans also...big plump ones. I think I'll keep making it this way, part black/part pinto. (Used chix broth, as always...and corn kernels which I think gives it some added interest. Shredded cheddar sprinkled on as garnish.) I still haven't ever whizzed this soup with the wand. We like seeing the various ingredients in the soup. :p

[alicerh]

I made this last night and it is very good. Of course I changed a few things as I usually do. I cooked dry beans ( 1 1/2 cup) and added a chili powder I made from dry Ancho and New Mexico peppers roasted and ground. I also use a stick blender to puree. This is probably my very favorite kitchen appliance. Does anyone else use one?
Alice

[emily]

Wanted to add to the chorus about this one, it was wonderful. Mine vigorously simmered for just over two hours, if I'd been home I would have turned the heat down :o Mine reduced a fair amount, so I didn't puree any of it. I made 2/3 of the recipe using just one can of chicken broth and 1 can of tomatoes and adding a little more water than called for to make up the liquid difference. This was excellent!

Emily

[stefania4]

My planned menu for this evening isn't going to happen, and since fiance has a cold I was looking for a good soup recipe. You've all convinced me - we're giving it a go tonight!

Best of all, someone recommended corn. I have fresh corn in my fridge and was looking for a way to use it up (leftover from corn chowder on Friday). I wouldn't have thought of that on my own, so I'm glad someone else did - that's what I love about this BB!

[mochadelsol]

When I made this I didn't remove the seeds from the chipotle, can you say spicy? The next night I added barley to help with the heat. Even though it was spicy DH & I really liked it. I froze the leftovers and took it back out again to have during my cold & flu. It really helped to clear my head:p Hope DF gets well soon.

[catbatty]

:)

Last time I made it, I went way overboard with the chipotles and the chili powder (doubled +)...but tho' it was WAY WAY hot - we both kinda screamed the first night :P -- it mellowed in the following 2 days and seemed fine. Odd. It's just good no matter what we do to it...we love the stuff! (I plan on freezing batches of it, pureed...I will be having a benign neck tumor removed in two weeks...and I won't be able to eat much solids for a few days... SO... I will LOVE getting better sipping this great soup.)

Purrrfect health food. :D ~ Brenda

[stefania4]

Thanks for the good wishes, Mochadelsol.

This soup is incredible! My only changes were:
2 cans of beans instead of 3
About 1 cup less chicken broth
Added the kernels from 2 ears of corn
Replaced one of the cans of tomatoes with a can of fire-roasted tomatoes

I served it with cornbread on the side. My sweetie had THREE bowls! We had a lot left over, so I ran some downstairs to our bachelor neighbor and he really enjoyed it.

A definite keeper.

[gertdog]

I finally got around to making this. I originally copied the recipe from this thread when it was first posted and now I have to laugh- I copied the version that was missing the 2 cans of broth! So when I was making the soup, I thought "well this isn't going to be enough liquid" and dumped in some water, and of course it turned out fine. Now of course I see I was supposed to add more liquid anyway! LOL!

We did use both chipotles, seeds and all, and I didn't find the soup to be too hot. I liked the soup a lot. We used lowfat sour cream on top, and with the cilantro it was very good. We served green chile tamales (from Trader Joe's) alongside for a very satisfying meal.

[gymbrat75]

Just had this soup for lunch. I froze individual servings when i made it last to reheat.
Tastes excellent!!!

[catbatty]

That soup, I swear, helped me lose 10 pounds. All I wanted to eat morning, noon, and night was that soup!! It's so healthy and oh me...it's just good. (Topped with a bit of cheddar and some fresh onion it's particularly good.)

Gert: the Trader Joe's tamales... (cheese/green chilies)... I've raved about those elsewhere on this bulletin board. I love those! In summer, we put guacamole on em. Yeow! And I love how easy they are. What? Unwrap and nuke for a few minutes? Wallah. (They aren't low-fat (7 grams as I recall ???)...but if served with that soup or something like that...then that's not much fat for a meal so it's almost HEALTH food!. hehe ) Ah, life can be **so** good. :p

[Canice]

I made this last night for tonight's dinner - another thumbs up! I took catbatty's advice and swapped out one can of black beans for pintos, and would do that again next time -- I otherwise followed the recipe. I think it could lose a cup or so of liquid, but I loved the taste and texture and think it would be a great vegetarian/vegan offering for soup night! I topped it with some thinly sliced green onion I happened to have in the crisper, but any traditional chile toppings would be great. This soup definitely goes into permanent rotation here! (BTW, I've made black bean soup three times before and they were all GROSS, so I'm extra happy to have found this :p )

[bobmark226]

First time for me on this oldie and all I can say is WOW!

Well...let me say more, actually...I think this may be the best bean soup ever. Somehow it didn't wind up being typically black beanish, nor, even with the addition of an extra chipotle, did I find it particularly spicy. The flavors merged beautifully, the vegetables retain their character. It was so good that after I'd eaten, I kept going back and dipping into the pot with corn chips while it was cooling. :)

TWO THUMBS AND A COUPLE OF BIG TOES UP!

BOB

[catbatty]

bump - Here is one of the discussions about the Smokey Black Bean Soup and the recipe. This stuff is soooo good. About getting to be a good time of year for it, too. :) PS: If you are grabbing the recipe here on this thread, please make sure to get the corrected version. The recipe calls for 2 cups water AND 2 cups vegetable stock.

I have used chicken stock for this soup, too, btw, when I didn't have veggie stock. It's good. Course, it's the shredded cheddar cheese and chopped onions that I add to each serving that REALLY make me love this soup. hehe Oh, too good. YUM.

[gabbyh]

I just LOVE bumps of these Oldies but Goodies...I missed this one the first time!

~Gail

[hon211]

I also love this soup. It makes a lot, and I freeze it in single serving containers. It is convenient to take to work for a healthy, satisfying lunch.

Word of warning ... resist the temptation to make it really spicy. The heat tends to intensify the next day. I have made batches that were almost too spicy to eat!

Hon211