Note from Kelly: I’m so pleased to have my sweet friend Beth joining us today to share her simply delicious recipe for Crockpot Black Bean Soup. Beth is the humorous and talented author of the natural living blog, Red and Honey where she writes about real food recipes, natural living DIYs, alternative health topics, and motherhood. So without further ado, take it away, Beth …
Guest post by Beth at Red and Honey
Black bean soup is the sneakiest meal ever; it’s basically like a ninja. It’s super frugal and ridiculously easy. There’s no main meat feature. There’s not a plethora of fancy ingredients to be deemed gourmet. One might think that it shouldn’t even taste very good with that introduction. But BAM! It’s a party of deliciousness with its warm and smooth black bean taste; notes of bacon, fried onion and peppers; plus sea salt, and my personal favorite – ground cumin! (Pretty much anything Tex-Mex-related is the best, including my family’s all-time favorite Southwest Taco Soup.)
You can top this hearty black bean soup with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of chives. Or maybe a little grated sharp cheddar and crumbled organic corn chips? I sometimes serve it over rice, which my kids enjoy. Avocado would be awfully nice, too. Mmmm, now I’m hungry!
I love meals where meat is not the main player because they’re easy on the budget, but to be honest – I’ve tried a lot of frugal recipes that have disappointed me in the taste department. I may be on a tight budget, but I like GOOD FOOD! I don’t believe that you have to sacrifice taste when you’re on a budget. In fact, I believe that plain and simple meals can be amazing. You just have to find the magical combo of ingredients (and maybe add a little bacon) …
Ingredients
- 8 slices nitrate-free bacon
- 1 cup diced bell pepper (yellow, red, or orange)
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 5 cloves fresh garlic, finely chopped
- 5-6 cans of black beans, drained (or 8-10 cups soaked and cooked black beans)
- 4 cups homemade chicken broth
- 3 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons salt
Instructions
- Fry bacon in a pan (I love my cast-iron!) Remove cooked bacon and set aside.
- Using the bacon grease in the pan, sauté peppers, onions, and garlic until mostly translucent.
- Add cumin and salt to the pepper mixture, and stir to combine for about a minute.
- Add the pepper mixture and all remaining ingredients to a 6-quart slow cooker set on low heat.
- Crumble up the bacon, and add to crockpot as well.
- Cook for 6 hours on low (or 4 hours or high).
- Use an immersion blender to partially puree the soup, according to your preference. I like mine just shy of all the way blended, but you blend to whatever consistency you prefer.
- Serve with your favorite toppings, and enjoy!
Notes
Note from Kelly: We love Beth's delicious black bean soup topped with a huge scoop of my fresh mango-pineapple salsa and a side of grilled shrimp kebobs! It's a real Caribbean delight!
Beth is the creator and editor at Red & Honey, a lifestyle blog for the naturally-minded homemaker. She recently began a passionate love affair with coffee and her life will never be the same. She has had three babies in less than four years, is a professional laundry-avoider, and loves to stay up way too late making weird stuff from scratch that normal people tend to just buy in a store. Hence, the coffee. You can follow Beth at her blog Red and Honey, as well as join the Red and Honey Facebook Community.
This looks delicious Beth! I love beans and bacon together.
Me too!
(Thanks for having me here, Kelly!) 😀 😀 😀
Sounds decadent! Especially with sour cream and bacon. Yum!
Everything’s better with bacon! LOL! Thanks, Sarah! 🙂
I made this for my family this week and it was EXCELLENT! I ended up throwing in a can of tomato sauce too – just because I needed to use it up. I’ll be making this again.
Thanks so much for sharing your tip about the tomato sauce, as well as your kind note! 🙂
That’s a good idea about the tomato sauce… I’m totally trying that next time 🙂 I was also thinking of adding a can of green chilis. This recipe lends itself well to experimentation 🙂
Hi! I accidentally deleted my email with this week’s food plan and the hyperlinks to recipes before I got all the recipes. I’ve tried searching your site for the broccoli salad recipe but I haven’t found it yet. Please email me the recipe or resend the Friday email and I can link to all the recipes.
Many thanks, Shannon
Just emailed you the link 🙂 Enjoy!
I made this tonight and added a few handfuls of kale before blending it. The family couldn’t taste it but they were getting their veggies. Thanks for the recipe. It was delicious!
What a GREAT idea, Lauren! Thanks for sharing that tip! So glad you and your family enjoyed this guest recipe from Beth. 🙂
This looks great! I love the new numbering system on this week’s meal plan. It makes things a lot faster if there are days we won’t be eating at home. Thanks so much!
Thanks, Shawna! So glad you’re enjoying the numbering system! Appreciate you taking the time to leave a kind note! 🙂
This recipe was fantastic! I didn’t have enough beans, but made it anyway and it was a hit. Even my super picky 6 year old ate almost his whole bowl and he wants it for lunch today. I love the comments about adding tomato sauce and kale. Glad I picked up kale yesterday and will be adding it to this soup in the future. 🙂
On behalf of Beth, we’re so happy you all enjoyed it! And yes, those suggestions of adding kale and tomato are great! I still need to try that myself. Thanks for taking the time to leave a kind note! 🙂
This is one bean soup I have yet to make. I have no idea what is stopping me. Thanks for the reminder and for the recipe, Beth (and Kelly!)
You are so welcome! Enjoy! Thanks for leaving a kind note! 🙂