Black Bean Soup

Cover the black beans with water. Boil 2 minutes then cover and let them boil for 2 hours.

While the black beans are boiling, put the pork roast or a beef bone in a large pot. Cover with plenty of water and let come to a boil. When the water is at a full boil, turn down to a simmer and let cook uncovered for approximately the two hours. If there isn’t a lot of meat on the bone or marrow for flavor, add a couple of teaspoons of chicken bouillon and let the water reduce by at least half. Remove the bone from the broth and pull off all the meat. I used a pork loin bone with a decent amount of meat left and also added a leftover steak cut into thin slices. Set meat aside.

Drain and rinse the black beans and add to the broth from the bone. Simmer beans covered approximately an hour or until nearly soft. Add chopped vegetables (carrots, celery, onions, green peppers, etc.) to the beans. Let simmer uncovered until the vegetables and beans are soft. Let cool slightly.

Blend a little over half the soup smooth using either an immersion blender or a stand blender. Add the meat back in, heat through and season to taste. For seasoning, I used a little over 1 teaspoon of Celestial Seasonings Sundried Tomato,Basil and Spinach blend. This would also be good with a mix of paprika, salt, onion, garlic powder, chili pepper.