The theme for Monday posts in November is Soup.
I love soup. I could live on soup. Mon mari is happy to have a bit for lunch, along with his sandwich.
When I was first living on my own I would make a big pot of soup every week and freeze it in serving size containers. After a few weeks I had a variety of soups to chose from all winter long.
The best part about soup is that it’s so easy. It doesn’t need to be precise, like baking. One doesn’t need to follow a recipe, and it’s a great way to use up leftovers. The only thing to remember to make a great soup is to ‘taste and adjust’ as it’s cooking.
Click here to Pin Black Bean Soup
PrintBlack Bean Soup
This is a ‘from scratch’ recipe, including soaking and cooking dried black beans. Substitute 4 cups (30 oz, 900 gr) canned, rinsed, black beans.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Soaking: 3 hours
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 5 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Soup
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 (10 oz, 300 gr) cup dry black beans
- 8oz (250gr) Prosciutto or other dry-cured ham, roughly chopped
- 4 bay leaves
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 1 rib celery, chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 1 tsp cumin
- 2 chili powder
- 2 tsp oregano
- 1 tbs tomato paste
- 5oz (150gr) city ham
Instructions
- Put beans in a large pot, cover with water and allow to soak for at least 3
- hours. Drain.
- Add 8 cups of water to beans and bring to a boil over medium heat.
- Add Prosciutto and bay leaves.
- Simmer, covered for 1 1/2 – 2 hours.
- When beans are tender, remove bay leaves.
- Add all vegetables to soup along with herbs and spices.
- Cover and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes.
- Cut ham into small pieces, add to soup.
- Stir in tomato paste. Serve.
Notes
Country ham is dried, like Prosciutto, Serrano, etc. City ham is the pink ham, often baked for holidays. This soup has both.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 recipe
- Calories: 426
- Sugar: 6.5 g
- Sodium: 1756 mg
- Fat: 7.2 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.3 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 53.4 g
- Fiber: 20.6 g
- Protein: 38.1 g
- Cholesterol: 58.9 mg
Keywords: black beans, soup, bean soup
For an easier, autumnal soup: Lentil & Butternut Squash Soup
That’s it !
Great minds. As it happens, we’re having ham and potato soup for dinner tonight. I love soup. I could eat it every night, either as a first course, with a sandwich or as a main. So many things you can do with it and it’s almost always foolproof.
It’s been ages since I’ve made Potato Soup… I need to do that again. Maybe I’ll get a ham at Christmas….
Does your butcher keep ham bones in the freezer at all? Mine does so when I have the urge, I buy one while I’m there. It’s nice because there’s always a little meat left on it. I buy a ham steak and toss it in to the simmer with the bone. You’d never know they weren’t all one.
I don’t know what the markets do with the ham bones… I’m almost afraid to ask. Only the country hams have the leg bone and my butcher doesn’t carry that kind of ham – but he might know….