Bone Broth Black Bean Soup
We are still in the heart of soup season, and I LOVE a good black bean soup! It is definitely in my top three favorite soups. Especially when it is a little spicy and especially nourishing. I happened upon this soup recipe with pantry items I had at home, frozen bone broth that I made this fall from our thanksgiving turkey, and some veggies that I had on hand. It ended up being so delicious, I couldn’t wait to share the recipe with you!
You know those 30 minute to the table and less dinners that actually take wayyy longer than you were hoping? I can promise you, this is a true 30 minute recipe. With only a handful of ingredients (most of which you likely have on hand) and short cook time, this recipe comes together quickly and easily. The addition of the bone broth makes this recipe far more satisfying to me than typically black bean soup due to the added fats and some proteins the fat provides.
Kitchen Tip!
Have you ever made homemade broth or bone broth? If not, try this tip! Save your bones from meals (I like to save the turkey bones from Thanksgiving) throughout the year in a freezer bag, stashed in your freezer. Add veggie scraps such as the outer onion layers, peels of carrots, and the garlic cloves that are too small to use in recipes. Did you buy some fresh herbs that you know you aren’t going use all of? Add the remainder to the freezer ‘scrap’ bag too. Once it is full, add all of the contents to your instant pot with any other additional veggies or herbs you have lying around, 1-2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar, and salt and pepper to your instant pot. Fill with water to the max fill line and pressure cook on high for 2 hours. If you are looking for a bone broth recipe to follow, here is the recipe I roughly use and often substitute veggies and herbs that I have on hand. Alternately you can simmer bones and veggie scraps on your cooktop for 8-24 hours and also achieve a yummy broth. I like to store my bone broth by filling mason jars leaving 1 inch of air at the top, letting cool to room temp, then placing in the refrigerator over night, and lastly transferred to the freezer. Making one or two large batches in the fall usually provides broth for my cooking throughout the winter.
Nutrition Tip!
Boy there are certainly a lot of health claims out there for bone broth lately. While we can’t quite say that bone broth contains magical healing properties, it does making a nourishing addition to meals. Bone broth contains more nutrients that regular broths, including vitamins, minerals and collagen which make this soup especially satiating! What is collagen anyway you may ask? Collagen is the most abundant protein of the connective tissue in our bodies, such as tendons and skin. Just like all proteins, it is made up of amino acids. Collagen however is not considered a complete protein as it is missing one of the nine essential amino acids. Also, just like other proteins, collagen is not absorbed as a whole molecule but is rather broken down into collagen peptides which are then used for protein synthesis wherever the body needs it most. This means there is no guarantee that collagen, either taken as a supplement or food sourced, will be used in a specific area of our bodies. If we are not consuming enough protein in our diet, it is unlikely benefits will be targeted to our hair, skin, nails, or joint health. There is definitely no harm in adding collagen sources to your diet if you choose to do so. If added to a well balanced diet, you may even potentially see some benefits to your skin or joint health! Even though strong evidence is lacking to support catchy marketing claims, bone broth can be a nourishing and delicious addition to your soups!
