Black Bean Soup

Tonight I made black bean soup.  It was a hit, although a bit too spicy for me.  My mouth was on fire as I was stuffing crackers in it to calm down the pain.  I love all the colors this dish brings to the meal: red, black, white, green....  So beautiful!!

Here is what I did:
1 lb black beans
1 onion
a bunch of garlic
3 cups cooked quinoa (is that 1.5 cups raw quinoa? not sure)
2 jalapeno peppers
3 cans organic diced tomatoes
1 container vegetable broth


Soak beans for 6-8 hours. (I know, I struggle with planning ahead for this step also.)  Boil on high for 2 hours.  Cook quinoa.  (I had some leftover from the night before.) In pot, put tomatoes, garlic (Mince if you like. I never do. I just toss them in whole), 2 jalapenos (Again, I toss them in whole and cut them up once they are cooked. It's my lazy way of doing things.), an onion (Ok, I cut the onion in tiny pieces first.), veggie broth, and water.  Boil.

I added the cooked quinoa once the onions were soft.  Put the beans in the pot once they are soft.
Enjoy!  I added crackers cuz it was so damn spicy.  I am not a fan of spicy.  But for winter, it was nice to clean out the sinuses.

Variations:
I don't worry about accurate measuring or ingredients when I cook.  Keeps the fun in it.
~Instead of quinoa, use rice, barley, or whatever grain you have on hand.
~Most people prefer less garlic, I like lots of garlic.
~Substitute chicken broth if you don't have veggie broth.  Or just throw in some bouillon cubes.
~Use green peppers if jalapenos are not your thing.


Beans and quinoa are really cheap forms of protein.  I am always trying to incorporate as much protein into my diet.

Hope you have fun with this one!  Let me know how you like it and any variations you try!!