Quick Black Bean Soup

Cold weather is coming, Fall is here and it's soup weather! Here is a super easy and quick recipe from Dr. Dean Ornish. For 1 1/2 cups it only has 164 calories and packs in 8.6 grams of protein.

Quick Black Bean Soup

• 1 cup diced onion
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/4 cups vegetable broth
• 2 (15oz) cans black beans
• 1 (15oz) can diced tomatoes
• 1 cup diced peeled russet-type baking potato
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp dried cumin
• 1/2 tsp Tabasco sauce, or to taste

Garnishes:
Diced red onion or green onion
Minced cilantro or parsley

Combine onion, garlic, and 1/4 cup vegetable broth in a large pot. Bring to a simmer and simmer until onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Add 1 cup of broth, black beans with their juice, tomatoes, potatoes, thyme, and cumin. Bring to a simmer, cover, adjust heat to maintain a simmer, and cook until potatoes are tender, about 25 minutes. Add Tabasco.
This is my addition to the recipe:
After soup is finished, use an immersion blender, potato masher, or even put 1/4-1/3 of the soup into the blender. Blend or mash, then return to the pot and stir. This makes the soup creamy and thicker, without adding any calories!