What's for Dinner? ~ Wednesday ~ January 15th

[livetohike]

26. The recipe I like best is from "Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home". The special ingredient is sun

dried tomatoes:

Black Bean Soup

10 Sun-dry tomatoes, (not packed in oil)
1 c. Boiling water
1 1/2 c. Onions, finely minced
3 Garlic cloves, chopped or possibly pressed
1 Jalapeno chile, chopped, or possibly 1/4 tsp. cayenne
2 Tbsp. Vegetable oil
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/3 c. Water
3 c. Tomatoes, (28-oz can -, undrained)
32 ounce Black beans, (canned) or 4 c. cooked with their liquid
1 c. Cilantro, minced fresh
Additional water or tomato juice
Sour cream or plain yogurt

Directions

In a small bowl, cover the sun-dry tomatoes with the boiling water and set aside. In a soup pot, saute/fry' the onions, garlic, and chile or possibly cayenne in the oil for about 5 min, stirring frequently, till the onions are translucent/soft. Add in the cumin, 1/3 c. water, and the juice from the tomatoes. Break up the tomatoes by squeezing them into the soup pot, or possibly chop them coarsely right in the can and add in them to the pot. Cover and bring to a boil. lower the heat and simmer; covered, for 5 min. Add in the black beans and their liquid, and continue to simmer, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Drain and chop the softened sun-dry tomatoes. Add in them to the soup and cook for 5 - 10 min longer, till the onions are tender. Stir in the cilantro and remove the soup from the heat. Puree half of the soup in a blender or possibly food processor and return it to the pot. If the soup is too thick, add in some water or possibly tomato juice. Reheat gently. Serve each bowl of soup with a dollop of yogurt or sour cream.