Sunday's Soup

I was initially attracted to this soup recipe because of these little guys, tomatillos!! They are a fascinating little vegetable. Although, they may actually be considered a fruit, regardless, they make a lovely addition to many recipes. I especially like making a sauce with them for white fish. Yum!

This recipe was developed by Kalyn, whose story is very interesting. She tells how she lost 42 pounds and became a food blogger here http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2005/04/how-i-lost-42-pounds-and-became-food.html. All of her recipes are seasonal, low glycemic and promote healthy eating, weight loss, and blood sugar control.
If you enjoy an aromatic soup with a bit of a tang, you will enjoy this recipe. The original recipe calls for 1/2 cup of lime juice which I did not add. With the tomatillos, I did not want the lime juice, but you may. It's added at the end, so you can make the decision once the soup has cooked. You can find the original recipe here, http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2008/10/crockpot-recipe-for-vegetarian-black.html
This soup is cooked in a crock pot, so it's a make it and let it cook kind of a soup. Oh I love it when things are easy!!! I added an extra 1/2 cup of brown rice which made my soup more of a stew, so it has a thicker consistency and I like that.

Vegetarian Black Bean and Tomatillo Soup
Ingredients:
1 T olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
8 tomatillos, chopped in 1/4 inch pieces (about 2 cups chopped tomatillo)
1 T finely minced garlic
1 T dried cilantro (optional, but recommended, available from Penzeys)
2 tsp. dried Mexican Oregano
2 tsp. ground cumin
2 cans (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed well
2 cans (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes with juice
4 cups vegetable broth or chicken stock (I used homemade chicken stock, but you could use canned vegetable or chicken broth)
1 cup water
1/2 cup uncooked brown rice
1/2 cup fresh squeezed lime juice (or a bit less if you don't love lime like I do)
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish if desired

Instructions:

Chop onions and tomatillos into pieces about 1/4 inch. Heat olive oil in large frying pan, then saute onions and tomatillos about 5 minutes, then add garlic, dried cilantro, Mexican Oregano, and cumin and saute 1-2 minutes more. While vegetables saute, dump beans into a colander placed in the sink and rinse until no more foam appears.

Put tomatillo-onion mixture into large 4-5 quart crockpot. (I used a 5 1/2 quart crock pot, but it was not completely full.) Add beans, tomatoes with juice, chicken stock, water, and brown rice. Cook on high for 4 hours (This could also be cooked on low for 8 hours.) Slow cookers can vary, so check and adjust the cooking time accordng to how hot your crockpot gets.)

After 4 hours (or 8 hours if using low) turn the crockpot to low setting, and let it cook 15 minutes to lower the temperature, then add the fresh lime juice and cilantro and cook 10 minutes on low. Serve hot, with additional chopped cilantro for garnish if desired.

I served mine with some shredded white cheddar and Tabasco sauce!! My husband said that he would have enjoyed it a little more served on a bed of rice. Regardless, I really enjoyed this recipe and I think it is a good one to have on file.

Hope you're having a wonderful weekend!
Rhonda