Soupruary 18th: Black Bean

Holy frijole! (I feel like I used to say that a lot as a kid. I'm bringin' it back.)

Location:
My apartment, Downtown, Cincinnati

Attendees:
Laura, Brent, Matt, Joshua, me


Menu:
Chips y salsa
Ensalada mixta
Pimienta amarilla con queso de Chihuahua
Sopa de frijoles negros
Helado de fresas y chocolate con Chocovine

Entertainment:
Preparation for Saturday's Cincinnati Addy Awards (more entertaining than it sounds!)
Avoiding looking at the television
Attempting to get the Valentine's Tree to look like a St. Patrick's Day Tree (it's already green, I mean, come on!)

The Soup:
This is my first time ever using a slow-cooker—thanks to Leslie and Bill for letting me borrow it, as I have none of my own. I was a little worried about just leaving it there to hang out while I was at work, but whaddya know! Easy as pie and a good deal healthier!


I zipped home at lunch, did the minimal prep work required, dumped everything in the C-pot, and when I got home: Voilà! Soup! I felt like saying "Abracadabra" when I lifted the lid, but instead I just breathed deeply and let my mouth start a-waterin'.


The soup was quite good--even Josh, a self-proclaimed black bean soup snob, said it was delicious. But what sets it apart is the cream. Ohhhh, boy. I would've eaten a whole bowl of it with a dollop of black bean soup. I've made the cream before without the lime, and the lime really kicks it up a WHOLE NOTHER (yeah, I said it. sue me.) notch. I want someone to invent a spa treatment that involves rubbing it all over your face, tell me it's really good for me, and then I want to have it done once a week for the rest of my life.


Adapted slightly from everyone's favorite blog, smitten kitchen, adapted from Bon Appetit

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 medium-size red onions, chopped
1 medium-size red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 medium-size green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 green serrano pepper, seeded and chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 teaspoons ground cumin
16 ounces dried black beans
1 tablespoon chopped chipotle chiles from a can
7 cups hot water
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 thinly sliced jalapeño, for garnish

Put a big frying pan on medium-high heat and add olive oil. When oil is hot, saute onions and peppers for about 8 minutes. Add garlic and cumin and cook for a minute longer, stirring. Transfer contents of frying pan to slow cooker; add beans, chipotle, and water. Cover and cook on high for 3 hours or until beans are the desired texture.

Puree two cups of the bean mixture, then return it to the slow cooker. Stir in lime juice, salt and pepper to taste (I used about 1 tablespoon kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper). Serve with toasted cumin sour cream (seriously do not skip this) and let people decorate their own bowls with sliced jalapeño if desired.


Toasted Cumin Seed Sour Cream
1 tablespoon whole cumin seeds
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
1 tablespoon lime juice

Sauté cumin seeds in a small, dry pan over medium heat and toast until they're golden. Grind to a coarse grit with a mortar and pestle. Stir cumin, lime zest, and lime juice into sour cream and season to taste with salt and pepper.