black bean soup and yoga

Aaaahhhhh.....I am in post-yoga bliss right now.  Another wonderful class at Studio 206, taught by Hilary.  I must say though that I am more of a 60-minute class kinda girl.  The 90-hour class is nice, you get extra time to work on balance positions, extra meditation time etc., but I really hate to get home after 9pm.  And, I honestly feel that I get as good of a workout in 60 minutes as I do in 90, its just stretched out more in 90. Anyway, the studio only offers one 60-minute class that works with my schedule each week so it looks like I'll have to make do... :)

Knowing that it was going to be a late night, I thought ahead this morning and revved up the crock pot for some black bean soup.  I love this simple, wholesome, filling recipe...I could eat it every single week.



Black Bean Soup

Ingredients:

• about 1 pound dry black beans


• one onion, diced


• one red bell pepper, diced


• 3 big garlic cloves, minced


• 1 can diced tomatoes (15 oz)


• 8 cups beef or veggie broth


• 1/2 tbsp cumin


• salt and pepper to taste


• cayenne pepper to taste

Steps:

1. Put all ingredients in crock pot EXCEPT for salt, pepper and cayenne.  


2. Set crock pot to low.  I do this in the morning before work and when I get home 10 hours later the beans are perfect.  You could cook them on high, but they would probably only take 5-6 hours total. 


3. When beans are done, stir in salt, pepper and cayenne to taste.  I don't put these spices in at first because they intensify with slow cooking, and I don't want my soup too salty or spicy.

That's it!  So easy and sooooooooo good.  I make brown rice to pour my soup on top of, and Brian likes saffron rice.  We sometimes chop up sausage or ham in the soup which also makes it really, really good. Cheese, sour cream and scallions are all good toppers.  You could add many other types of veggies to make it your own...its so versatile.

Instead of sausage in the soup this time we pan-fried it and had it on the side.  I knew Brian would want lots and I just wanted a little taste, so this was the best compromise.  This sausage is from Babes in the Wood, a local company that breeds a certain type of pig that they allow to forage in the woods.  Its a highly sustainable practice and the pigs lead happy lives eating the things they are meant to eat.  And, it is DELICIOUS.  I am not a big fan of sausage, but this stuff makes me pretty happy.

my dinner bowl

• 1/2 cup brown rice


• 2 cups black bean soup


• 1 tbsp sour cream


• 1/2 sausage link

brian's dinner bowl

• saffron rice


• lots of bean soup


• lots of cheese


• 1-1/2 sausage links

For dessert I had a Kozy Shack rice pudding cup with berries on top.



A little backtrack, tonight before yoga I tried the Clif Mojo Peanut Butter Pretzel bar.



Product Review: Clif Mojo Peanut Butter Pretzel

Ok, I know I've been saying this a lot lately and you're probably going to stop believing me if I don't give something a bad review soon, but this bar was AMAZING.  Seriously.  I felt like I was eating a candy bar. The only negative thing I have to say is that it has 200 calories...I usually like to stay in the 120-150 calorie range for my afternoon snacks.  But, every single extra calorie was worth it.  I thought about only eating 3/4s of it but once I bit into the peanut-y, pretzel-y goodness there was no turning back.  I polished it off. Plus, I burned 350+ calories at yoga tonight.  So there.  :)

Now I am off to enjoy my post-yoga bliss before crashing in bed.  Have a great night!