Black Bean Soup

This recipe makes about 14 cups of soup.

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat.
2. Add the onion and bell pepper, season with salt and pepper, and cook until tender, stirring occasionally.
3. Stir in the garlic, cumin, paprika, and oregano. Cook for about 1 minute, or until fragrant.
4. Add the beans, stock, and bay leaves. Stir well and bring the mixture to a boil.
5. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 40–45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. Remove and discard the bay leaves. Stir in the sherry vinegar.
7. Transfer 2 ½ cups of beans and 1 cup of cooking liquid to a large bowl. Use an immersion blender to blend until smooth.
8. Return the blended mixture to the pot and stir until fully combined.
9. Refrigerate the mixture overnight to allow the flavors to develop.
10. Spread the mixture evenly onto parchment-lined trays, using dividers to create 40 portions.
11. Place trays in the freezer and freeze until solid.
12. Freeze dry until fully dried (my cycle time was 38 hours).
    

Rehydration:

To rehydrate one serving, combine the freeze dried soup with about 2 to 2 ½ cups of hot water. Stir well, cover, and let sit for 5–10 minutes until fully rehydrated and heated through.

Notes:

This recipe makes 6- 2 ⅓ cups servings of soup. This soup is excellent when served with garnishes of avocado, onion, cilantro and lime wedges. You can add freeze dried lime wedges to packaged single servings of soup, to have lime available when rehydrated.

Nutritional Value Per 1 serving

Calories: 390  Protein: 19 g   Fat: 12 g   Carbohydrates: 54 g   Sugar: 4 g   Fiber: 18 g

Cycle times & rehydration for reference only. Your results may vary.