I have been in such a fabulous mood lately! It probably helps that its my favorite time of year, with all my favorite events going on! Going back to work has been great, as much as I miss my little guy, and believe me I do, its nice to get a break, it makes me feel like a better mom when I am home because I devote so much more to him, for me, its been great. Other than the fact that my little man has decided he hates to sleep, seriously if there are any moms out there with any advice on getting a baby to sleep, I am all ears, he used to sleep so well, and he’s regressed in that area, badly, but other than that, life has been pretty smooth and I couldn’t be happier!
I’ve recently become obsessed with all these DIY blogs! A couple of my favorites are Less than Perfect Life of Bliss, All things Thrifty, and Centsational Girl. They’re fab and have some great ideas! Now I find myself scouring Goodwill and Craigslist for something I can do a makeover too. I bought a few wall frames and mirrors that needed a little TLC, and once I started spray painting, I’ve got this itch to keep on doing it! It’s so fun! ha This week I bought a beautiful table that came with six upholstered chairs, seriously they were beautiful, with carvings, and arms, comfy seats, I couldn’t get it out of my head, so I went and looked at it, and even though I know we didn’t need it, I now have a beautiful new set sitting in my kitchen. I can’t wait to reupholster them to a fabric I love, and to paint these baby’s! They are so fab, I’m so giddy and excited about it if you can’t tell! 😛
So last night my table and chairs were delivered,but we weren’t sure what time, so dinner had to be something quick since we were short on time, but I didn’t want it to be short on flavor. Obvi. SO about a month back I saw this recipe for Black Bean Soup, and seriously, I passed right by it, because I HATE black beans (or so I thought), but then I revisited the idea because my boyfriend LOOOVES black beans, seriously, he’ll just warmup a can, add sour cream and salsa and go to town, I don’t get it. But I ended up printing this recipe anyways, thinking one day I would just make it for him and give black beans another try myself…
BOY AM I GLAD I DID! I am not exaggerating when I say this is serious the most delicious thing I have eaten in a while. The entire time we were eating, he kept saying “Oh my God, Oh my God, this is so good” as well as “This is an A++ meal, this is 5 star restaurant quality” No I am not praising myself (entirely) because the original idea wasnt mine, however like he said last night “The bread bowl and cheese, bring it to an entirely new level”. So MAKE THIS, if you don’t like black beans, you will after this. And make it with the bread bowl and cheese because it is seriously not at all the same without it.
This is by far the greatest end result for quick meals. My mouth is watering, wishing I had more. I know I always say “You will love it”, but seriously, you will. I was skeptical too at first…black beans? bleh! But I am soo happy I gave them another chance! Its super fast, super easy, and super scrumptious!
Spicy Black Bean Soup
Adapted From: My Life as a Mrs
Yield: 3 Servings Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 35 minutes Total Time: 50 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 Tsp. olive Oil
- 1/4 of a yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 15 oz. cans black beans, drained and rinse
- 6 oz. Chicken Broth (half a can)
- 1 tomato, diced small
- 1/2 can yellow corn, drained
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- salt & pepper to taste
- 2 French Boule’s
- 3 cups cheddar cheese, freshly shredded
Directions:
- Heat up your olive oil in a soup pot, add garlic and onions. Saute until soft.
- Take one can of black beans, drain and rinse them, add them to your food processor. (You can use a blender if you don’t have a food processor.)
- Add to the food processor; the garlic and onion mix, chicken broth, ground cumin, and red pepper flakes. Pulse until puree.
- Pour into the pot your onions and garlic were in. Drain and rinse your second can of black beans. (DONT PUREE) Add them to the pot.
- Toss in the corn and diced tomatoes.
- Season with cayenne pepper, garlic powder, and mix. Add salt and pepper to your taste. (Truthfully, I added a teeny bit of salt, but this didn’t need much, and no pepper, it was great as it!)
- Once everything is mixed, cover and simmer for about a half hour.
- While its simmering, take your french boules, and carve out the middle to make a bowl. Shred your cheddar cheese.
- Pre-heat your oven to broil.
- Layer about a half cup of the cheese on the bottom of each bowl. When the soup is ready fill your bread bowls and add more cheese on the top!
- Put on a baking sheet and broil for about 3-5 minutes. It doesn’t take long, and you don’t wat your cheese to burn, so keep an eye on it. You want it to be a bubbling, golden brown.
Pull it out and serve! You can add sour cream if you’d like, but we ate it as was and it was PERFECT! The crispy bread and melted cheese combined so well with the black bean soup!