Black Bean Soup

Ahhh summer. I love days by the pool, nights out on the town and how social everyone seems to become during this time of year. In Atlanta it's been a strange summer this year. Rather than grabbing my bikini and running to the nearest watering hole, I've been land-locked by all of the rain. It seems each day that I think we may just get a full day of sunshine, I step outside with hopes of a pool day and end up having to head home.

During the summer I always try and lighten up my recipes with low carb meals. The only problem is my favorite food is Mexican food and I find myself dying for queso a few days in to the healthy eating regime. With all this rain and my cravings for Mexican food, it suddenly dawned upon me...SOUP! There is something so satisfying about a bowl of hearty soup with a large dollop of greek yogurt (my substitute for sour cream), that helps all those naughty cravings go away.

The best thing about this soup is not the calorie content, but the price tag to make it. I came up with a Meals Under $10 Challenge to see how low I could get our grocery bill for the month. I'm a girl who likes the finer things in life, and our meals out on the town were cutting into that budget significantly. This soup is so simple it's a nice reminder that sometimes, less is more. (Rather than cook the beans from dry, I prefer to save time with canned black beans with low sodium.)  

Black Bean Soup Recipe

Preparation: 10 min

                  Cook Time: 35 min  Total Time: 45 min                       

Ingredients

          1 can black beans

          1/2 cup chicken stock

          1/2 red bell pepper

          1/2 green bell pepper

          1/4 cup chopped red onion

          1 tbsp cumin

          1 tsp garlic powder

          1/4 tsp chili powder

          Salt & Pepper to taste

          2 tbsp fresh chopped cilantro + extra for garnish

          Optional: top with Cilantro Lime Rice

Instructions

          Pour your beans into a sieve and give them a quick rinse.

          Chop your onion and bell peppers and add them to a large pot with half of your chicken stock.

          Cook the ingredients until tender on medium heat (about 5-8 min) stirring occasionally.

          Once tender, add your black beans, remaining chicken stock, and spices. Cook until warm.

          Transfer 3/4 of the soup to a blender, food processor or use an immersion blender to blend

          the soup. Add the blended soup back into the pot and mix.

          Serve with a dollop of sour cream or plain greek yogurt. Garnish with cilantro.

          Enjoy!