Eat This: Moosewood’s Texas BBQ Bean Soup

Another Meatless Monday in the Layer household strikes again.

The hubby and I recently went to Ithaca and while there dined at the famous vegetarian restaurant, Moosewood. (Read more about it here.) I promptly ordered their cookbook once I arrived home and have been anxious to try it out.  Well, at 6 a.m. Monday and still without an idea for dinner, I knew I had a stash of cooked white beans in the freezer and just the book to help. Read about last night’s dinner here.

Moosewood’s Texas BBQ Bean Soup

It appears to have a lot of ingredients, but it’s really rather simple.  A couple things to remember: this recipe calls for spice seeds that need to be ground–if you aren’t into that, be sure to have the ground versions on hand; chipotles in adobo are HOT–proceed with caution; be sure to have your own BBQ sauce, store-bought BBQ sauce, or whip up the one they recommend on another page.

2 cups onions, chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup celery, diced
1 cup red bell pepper, chopped
1 cup green bell pepper, chopped
1 small fresh chili pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cups water
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can tomatoes, chopped and undrained
1 (15 1/2 ounce) can black-eyed peas, drained or 1 1/2 cups cooked black-eyed peas
1 (15 1/2 ounce) can pinto beans or 1 (15 1/2 ounce) can red kidney beans or 1 (15 1/2 ounce) can black beans or 1 1/2 cups cooked beans
1/4 cup barbecue sauce
salt
crushed tortilla chips
sour cream (optional)

Directions:

In a soup pot, combine the onions and garlic with the oil and salt.

Cover and cook on medium heat for 8-10 minutes, or until the onions are soft and translucent, stirring occasionally.

Add the celery, bell peppers, chile, oregano, thyme, cumin, and black pepper and saute for 10 minutes, stirring often.

Add the water and tomatoes, cover and simmer until the veggies are tender, 10-15 minutes.

Add the black-eyed peas, your choice of beans, and the barbecue sauce.

Mix well, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add salt to taste.

Garnish with crushed tortilla chips and sour cream on top if desired.

Nutrition Information:

Serving Size: 1 (440 g)
Servings Per Recipe: 6

Amount Per Serving:

Calories 275.9

Calories from Fat 531

Total Fat 5.9 g

Saturated Fat 0.9 g

Cholesterol 0.0 mg

Sodium 527.5 mg

Total Carbohydrate 45.8 g

Dietary Fiber 12.3 g

Sugars 9.4 g

Protein 12.2 g