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Black Bean Soup with Cumin:

2 cups dried black beans, washed and picked over
8 cups water
1/4 cup olive oil or 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 large onions, diced
6 garlic cloves, minced or pureed
1 large jalapeno chile, stemmed, seeded, if desired and finely chopped
2 teaspoons salt
6 cups vegetable stock
1 1/2 cups Salsa Fresca for garnish, recipe to follow
1 cup Crema, recipe to follow, Creme Fraiche or sour cream, for garnish
2 tablespoons ground cumin

In a large saucepan over high heat, place the water and black beans. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the beans are soft, about 1 hour. Remove from the heat. In another large saucepan or stockpot, heat the olive oil or butter over medium low heat. Cook the onions until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin, jalapeno and salt and cook, stirring constantly, until the garlic's aroma is released, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the black beans and their liquid and mix well. Pour in the vegetable stock. Turn up the heat and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, an additional 30 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a blender in batches and puree until smooth, pulsing the machine on and off until it begins to liquefy. Ladle the hot soup into bowls and garnish each serving with a generous tablespoonful of salsa fresca and crema, creme fraiche or sour cream.

SALSA FRESCA
4 medium ripe tomatoes, cored, seeded, and finely diced
1/4 red onion, minced
2 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded, if desired and minced
1 bunch cilantro, leaves only, chopped
2 tablespoons lime juice
3/4 teaspoon salt
Pinch of freshly ground pepper


Combine all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Stir and toss well, and serve. Store in a covered container in the refrigerator no more than a day.

CREMA
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup buttermilk


Whisk the cream and buttermilk together. Cover and set in a warm place for 8 hours. Crema may be kept in the refrigerator as long as a week.


Vegetarian Black Bean Soup:

2 cups organic dried black beans
1 cup diced yellow onion
1 cup diced carrot
1 cup diced celery
4 cloves garlic, diced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Cumin
1/2 cup Sherry

On a cookie sheet, sort the black beans, removing any rocks, and wash the beans. Place the beans in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook for about 1 hour. Drain beans and rinse. Return to the saucepan and cover with fresh water and cook another 4 to 5 hours, until tender, adding more water as necessary.
Once beans are tender, stir in mire poix of onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Cook until vegetables are tender. Season with salt, pepper and cumin, to taste. Stir in the sherry


Black Beans and Rice:
2 cups long grain white rice
3 1/2 cups low sodium/low fat chicken stock
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon chili powder
2-3 tablespoons marinade from Chicken Tonette
1 can black beans, drained

Place rice, stock, turmeric, and chili powder into a large microwave safe bowl or measuring cup. Microwave on high for 10 minutes and on medium for an additional 15 minutes. Remove from microwave and fluff rice with a fork. Stir in marinade and black beans.