I’m a huge fan of black bean soup.  The love affair started the summer of 1991 when I went to Puerto Rico with my grandparents.  At the time, my grandpa was working in Puerto Rico and I went down, with my grandma, to visit him.  My grandpa, having been living on his own for a few months, had gotten to know the best, most local restaurants.  I don’t remember the name of the restaurant, we ate their at LEAST 2 or 3 times when I was visiting.  The memory is distinct:  red snapper, unbelievably fluffy white rice, and a side of black beans.

The beans in Puerto Rico were only slightly soupy- more thick than thin.  This weight watcher’s soup doesn’t come close to the consistency, but is HUGE on flavor. 

Original Weight Watcher recipe can be found here.  I changed a few things up.  Next time I make the recipe I think I’ll use Muir Glen fire roasted crushed tomatoes and a fresh jalapeno chili for some heat.  I love the extra smokiness the fire roasted tomatoes contribute- a perfect paring with the cumin.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1-2 sprays of cooking spray (I use Olive Oil spray from Trader Joes)
  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 3 15 ounce cans of black beans, undrained
  • 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (or to taste)- I didn’t add this but instead added 1 tsp of jerk seasoning
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 14 1/2 ounces of canned, fat free chicken broth (I use low sodium)
  • 10 ounces of canned tomatoes with green chilies
  • 11 ounce can of yellow corn (I much prefer frozen veg- so I used 1 cup of frozen roasted corn from trader joes- the smokey flavor of the roasted corn goes PERFECTLY with this dish)

DIRECTIONS

Coat bottom of large stock pot with cooking spray.  Over medium heat, saute the onions & garlic until softened (not browned), about 3-4 minutes. 

Once softened, add one can of beans with juices to pot.  Meanwhile, puree in food processor or blender, two cans of beans with their juices.  Once pureed, add to the pot.

Add in tomatoes with green chilis, cumin, jerk spice (if using) or red pepper flakes, and corn.  Simmer for 20-3o minutes over low heat.

YIELD

Approximately 8, 1 1/2 cup servings at 3 points each.

I served mine with 1/2 cup of brown rice (2 pts).