Healthy and Hearty Black Bean Soup

Chop onion into 1/2 inch dice.

Empty the black beans into a fine mesh strainer. Gently rinse the beans under cold water until the water runs clear, and thoroughly drain them. Divide the beans in half and place each portion into small bowls. Set aside.

Add the olive oil to a four quart soup pot over medium high heat, add onions and saute (stirring constantly with a wooden spoon to prevent sticking) until the onions are softened but not browned (about 3-4 minutes).

Add the cumin, salt and cayenne pepper to the onions and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly to evenly coat the onions with the spices and prevent sticking or burning.

Add the chicken broth to the pot, stir to combine and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to medium.

Add the salsa and stir to combine. Simmer gently for 5 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking or burning.

Add half of the rinsed and drained black beans (reserving the other half) to the soup pot and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Remove pot from heat and use immersion blender to puree the soup in the pot (Note: You may also puree the soup, 1 cup at a time, in a blender. As you blend each cup of the soup mixture, set the puree aside in a heatproof bowl. When the entire pot of soup has been pureed, return all of the puree to the soup pot).

Add the reserved beans to the pureed soup, return the pot to the stove and simmer on medium heat for 5 minutes to heat the beans through.

Serve the soup warm in bowls. Top each serving with one tablespoon sour cream and sprinkle each with one tablespoon of the chopped cilantro. Serve a lime wedge on the side.