Vegan Black Bean Soup

Healthy and filling, this soup is perfect for those Meatless Mondays when you need a bit of warming up. It's fantastic topped with some crushed tortilla chips and a dollop of vegan sour cream or a sprinkle of some Daiya. If you're feeding it to a little one, you can add a bit more veggie broth and puree their serving until smooth.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
1 stalk celery, finely diced
2 carrots, peeled and finely diced
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 tablespoons cumin
3 or 4 turns of freshly ground pepper
4 cups vegetable broth
3 cans of black beans (15 oz each)
1 can kidney beans (15 oz)
15 oz frozen corn
15 oz can of crushed tomatoes

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Saute onion, celery, carrots and garlic for 5 minutes. Add the chili powder, cumin, and black pepper, then stir and cook for 1 minute. Stir in vegetable broth, 2 cans of beans (1 black and the kidney beans), and corn. Bring to a boil.

In your food processor or blender, process the last 2 cans of beans and tomatoes until smooth. Stir into boiling soup mixture, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 15 minutes.