Thai-Mex Chili Soup

I tried a new recipe tonight and it was great (if you like things a little spicy), but it was easy to make and delicioso – avoiding many food culprits (no sugar, dairy or meat) Try it and see if you like it. It tastes more Mex than Thai, but I named it this b/c of the Coconut Milk. Did you know that “cilantro” is actually Chinese parsley? not from Central/So. America, but it’s included in a lot of Mex food, go figure. I didn’t have 2 cans of black beans so I added 1 can of kidney beans—still tasted great! It would be great to serve as a first dish with tamales or Trader Joes cornbread pizza (that’s what we had tonight) as your main entrée.

Soup is a great first dish. If you add cooked white (or jasmine) rice it could be an entree.

2 tsp olive oil
1 small onions
1.5 tsp toasted ground cumin seeds
.25 cup cilantro leaves, extra for garnish
3 cups water
2 15 oz black beans
1 can coconut milk
2 tsp sea salt
2 juice, from fresh limes

Directions
1 Heat oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add onion (chopped), cumin (use powder if you don't have crushed seeds), chili and cilantro (use plain parsley if you don't like cilantro). Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
2 Add 1/2 cup water. Lower heat and cook until onions are soft; about 12 minutes.
3 Add beans including liquid, remaining water (2.5 C) and coconut milk. Bring to a boil, then Lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
4 Remove pot from heat. With a slotted spoon, remove about 1 C beans. Puree in a blender on high speech and return to pot (if your blender isn't handy, do the same but smash with a fork).
5 Add salt and lime juice. Stir. Ladle into heated bowls. Garnish with cilantro (or plain parsley).

Servings: 6
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Ready in: 25 minutes