Friday 16 December 2011

Mexican Black Bean Soup

Kitchen Play List: Billy Joel ~ She's Always A Woman
                                     Mr.Buble ~ Wonderful Tonight
                                     Dean Martin/Helen O'Connor ~ How Do You..
                                     Def Leppard ~ Animal
                                     Tina Turner ~ Nutbush City Limits
                                     Melissa Etheridge ~ Breathe

NB This post was originally written during the detox period and I wrote it up and for some reason couldn't bring myself to post it. Maybe it's the unattractiveness of the soup?? I'm not sure now but as my computer is still holding my files hostage and refusing to work at its correct potential I have little else to post today and I wanted to bring you a festive posting with lots of Ho Ho Ho but my Ho Ho Ho has forsaken me. So I give you this soup recipe...as you can never have too many!!..and a promise to bring regular activity and some Ho Ho Ho back tomorrow. I believe we are very nearly at the point of sorting a temporary solution to to techno problems..well one that doesn't involve a sledgehammer at least ;o) lol Thanks for your patience.. ~R~  
 

0/10 was the score we gave this soup when we first tried it. lol. Oh it was truly awful. But then I have played around with it and adapted it a lot. So it's basically the same ingredients but cooked in a completely different way. And if I'm honest the first time I attempted it, I was using dried black beans which didn't want to cook no matter how I tried. So the first attempt was made with very hard bullet like beans even after 10 hours cooking!! Since then I now use tinned precooked beans as I have seen the light! lol. I also blitz the whole soup when cooked and then add a tin of pinto/borlotti beans in at the end of the reheating time.  The original recipe also has Tomato Salsa added to it but I don't add that now. If you want the original recipe then I strongly urge you to buy yourself a copy of Rose Elliots cook book Low Fat, Low Sugar

My copy is barely holding together and I fear it's not going to last much longer. But it's such a fantastic cookbook. And it has been priceless during this detox period. Thank you Rose...

Mexican Black Bean Soup ~ not the prettiest of soups but sure is tasty! lol
Mexican Black Bean Soup Serves 4
(Adapted from a recipe in Low Fat, Low Sugar/Elliot)

1 onion, chopped
1 large carrot, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 sprigs of fresh parsley
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp dried oregano
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 14oz carton black beans, rinsed and drained
1 14oz carton soya beans, rinsed and drained
1 14oz tin of pinto/borlotti beans, rinsed and drained
30fl oz veggie stock or water

In a non-stick saucepan add the onion, celery, carrot and garlic and cook over a low heat until softened. Add the herbs (except the parsley..) and spices to the veggie mix and stir well. Add in the drained beans and stir thoroughly. Next add in the stock or water and stir well. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add in the parsley and cook for a further 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and then blend until smooth. Return to the heat and add in the pinto/borlotti beans and cook until the soup is reheated. 

Enjoy! 
~R~