Southwest Black Bean Soup
Serves 4

Southwest Black Bean Soup

Inspiration

One of my favorite southwest/Mexican foods is Southwest Black Beans and Peppers. When there is some left over it becomes this delicious and hearty soup.

Hints

1. Unsweetened cocoa powder adds a base richness to chili and other southwest/Mexican bean dishes. Chinese Fermented Beans or Fermented Black Bean Paste (Sun Luck is a national brand available in most Asian food sections of major grocery stores) add a distinct, wonderful flavor to dishes made with black beans.
2. If you like to cook Mexican flavored foods, keep Green and Hickory Smoked Tabasco sauces and canned black beans in your pantry.

Ingredients

2-3 cups leftover Southwest Black Beans and Peppers
1 qt. homemade chicken stock
1 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro with 6 stems set aside for garnish
½ cup thinly sliced Anaheim or Poblano pepper
½ red bell pepper, pith and seeds removed, thinly sliced in 1” strips
1-2 tbs. Green Tabasco
Juice from 1 large lime plus another lime cut in 6 wedges
1 ½ cups crumbled Queso Panela Mexican cheese or grated, aged Monterey Jack cheese

Procedure

1. In a soup pot, add leftover Black Beans and Peppers to stock and turn heat to medium. Stir to mix. Add chopped cilantro, sliced chili pepper, red pepper strips, Tabasco and lime juice.
2. When soup begins to bubble, turn heat down to low and simmer for 3 or 4 minutes, stirring often to avoid having the beans stick to the bottom of the pot. Taste the soup and add salt or more Green or Hickory Smoked Tabasco if needed.
3. To Serve: Ladle soup into warmed bowls. Divide the crumbled or grated cheese among the bowls, mounded in the center. Sprinkle remaining chopped cilantro around the mound and put a cilantro sprig on top of each cheese mound. Put a wedge of lime at the base of each cheese mound and serve immediately.