I was flipping through December’s Food & Wine magazine, came across a recipe for Black Bean and Chorizo Soup, and thought why not?  Although the recipes did seem a little subpar, I thought that it would be a good change to my current favorite Black Bean Soup recipe.  As things go, I was opening the package of chorizos (unfortunately, there is a lack of quality chorizo in Vermont) and found yet another Black Bean and Chorizo Soup recipe on the packaging.  The recipe below is a spin off of both the Food & Wine recipe and the one found on the chorizo package.

Ingredients:

• 8 oz diced Chorizo
• 1 diced Onion
• 2 minced Cloves of Garlic
• 1 tbsp Olive Oil
• 3 tbsp Cooking Sherry
• 1 tsp ground Cumin
• 1/2 tsp ground Coriander
• 16 oz of canned or presoaked Black Beans
• juice of 1 Lime
• 4 cups Chicken Broth
• Salt and Pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped Cilantro

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil in the bottom of a stew pot.
2. Brown the chorizo in the bottom of the pot.
3. Add the onions and the garlic.
4. Cook the onions until slightly transparent.
5. Deglaze the pan slightly with the sherry.
6. Add the cumin, coriander, and lime juice.
7. Add the black beans.
8. Add the chicken broth.
9. Bring the soup to a boil, and then reduce heat to a simmer.
10. Continue to cook the soup for at least another 30 -45 minutes.
11. Season the soup with salt and pepper right before serving.
12. Stir in the chopped cilantro right before serving.

Garnish Soup with:

• Sour Cream
• sliced Avocado
• toasted Corn Tortillas
• wedges of Lime
• Jalapeño slices
• favorite Hot Sauce