Vegan Black Bean Soup

Hearty and delicious, the perfect end of summer soup. I had a bit of taco tofu left over from the night before, and added that in. But I left it out of this recipe. You can add in soy crumbles or tofu, if you like.

Ingredients:

3 cups cooked blackbeans, divided, (reserve 1 cup for blender)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large onion, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 pinch black pepper
4 cups vegetable broth
1 ear fresh corn, kernels sliced off (or one cup frozen or canned corn)
4 sprigs of cilantro
1 (14.5 ounce) can stewed tomatoes





1.Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Saute onion, celery, carrots and garlic for until soft. Season with chili powder, cumin, and black pepper; cook for 1 minute. Stir in vegetable broth, 2 cups of beans, and corn. Bring to a boil.


2.Meanwhile, in a food processor or blender, process remaining  beans, cilantro and tomatoes until smooth. Stir into boiling soup mixture, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 15 minutes.

Serve with tortilla chips or rice.





Vegan Pumpkin Enchiladas

Born of the wonderful bounty of pumpkin puree I had in my freezer, these pumpkin enchiladas had all my meat-loving friends and family *almost* in tears. Hands-down the best enchiladas I've made, ever. Don't be put-off by the strange ingredients, they're completely, freakin' awesome.

Pumpkin Enchiladas

Sauce:

2 cups unseasoned pumpkin puree, fresh or canned
1 cup water
1 cup veggie broth
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. chili powder
2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp pepper
1 seeded jalepeno
3 cloves of garlic
handful of fresh cilantro

Puree all ingredients in the blender until smooth.

For the filling

4 red potatoes, diced
1 small onion, diced
1 cup green beans, ends cut off and chopped
5 button mushrooms, sliced
1/2 each, orange and red bell pepper, chopped
1 cup corn kernels (frozen works nicely)

Saute the potatoes 5 minutes in olive oil, stirring occasionally. Add in onion and mushrooms, cook another 3 minutes. Add in bell pepper and corn, continue to cook for another 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.

Cover the bottom of a 9 X 13 pan with pumpkin sauce. Set aside.

Meanwhile, heat corn tortillas (the recipe makes about a dozen or so) to prevent cracking while handling ( I do this over my gas burner for a few seconds).

Fill each torilla with a small amount of filling and roll. Place seam-side-down in the pan and continue to roll tortillas until the pan is filled. Cover with a bit more sauce (not too much or it will all be soggy) and bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.

Top with salsa, vegan sour cream and fresh sliced green onions.

I served ours with my "Santa Monica Pilaf" that used a mix of couscous, lentils, rice and quinoa
that was cooked with a bit of garlic and olive oil and topped with cilantro. I'll post that recipe at a later date!