Blast from the Past: Wil Wheaton's Black Bean Soup

So, although I have started this new blog, my old recipe one (Recipes and Other Randomness) still exists and I will occasionally be reposting some items from over there to here.  Today is one of those times.

This is an excellent bean soup recipe and I strongly suggest you try it.  In today's batch, I left out the chipotle pepper, but only because I forgot to get one at the store and didn't feel like running back out.  I'm also currently dairy-free, so I had to forego my lovely sour cream.  I has a sad about that.

Anyway, here is the original blog posting, in all its glory:


Occasionally, I will stumble across recipes in strange places.  For example, the tomato-feta tart recipe was found in a novel.  The recipe for the Black Bean Soup was found on Wil Wheaton's blog.  See, I follow Wil on Twitter because, yes, I am just that much of a geek.  A couple of weeks ago, he posted this recipe on his blog and it caught my eye.  You can find the original blog post here:  http://wilwheaton.typepad.com/wwdnbackup/2011/03/soup-black-bean-hot.html

A note on Wil Wheaton.  I had a huge crush on him growing up (Stand By Me, anyone?  And Star Trek: TNG, ring a bell?).  These days, I enjoy seeing him whenever he pops up on Big Bang Theory.  I also truly enjoy following him on Twitter, and find his blog posts to be exceptionally intelligent and well-written.  In short, I heart him.

So, on with the soup.  In true Allison fashion, I did make a change to the recipe, but for the most part this is strictly Mr. Wheaton's creation, and I bow to him in thanks.

You will need:

• A can of black beans.
• One chipotle pepper. (Or more if you want, who am I to judge?)
• An onion.
• Minced garlic.
• A lime.
• Tomatoes.  Normally I would have used Romas, but the ones at the store were gross and my plant hasn't started producing yet.  So, I had to use these.
• Olive oil.
• A can of corn.  The addition of corn was my change to the recipe, so if you don't like that part, blame me.
• Cumin.
• Oregano.
• Salt and pepper.

What to do:

1)  Chop up your onion and garlic, and sauté them in olive oil until translucent in a sauce pan.

2)  Add your cumin, stir well, and continue to cook for a few minutes.

3)  Chop up your tomatoes.

4)  Shake your can of beans, open, and add to the pot.  Stir.

5)  Add the tomatoes.  Stir.

6)  Chop up your chipotle(s) and add to the pot, along with some oregano.

7)  Juice your lime right over the pot.  That's right, squeeze the bitch until it begs for mercy.

8)  Drain the can of corn and add to soup.  Stir well.

9)  Add salt and pepper if desired, a small amount of water (I used half of the corn can) and simmer for 20 minutes or so until the beans are tender.

10)  Enjoy!  I added a dollop of sour cream to mine and it was wonderful!  (picture before the sour cream, obviously)