Hearty Black Bean Soup

This is one of our favorites and fits well with a Nutritarian eating style. It was adapted from a recipe in "25 Vegetarian Soups" that I downloaded for my Kindle. It's a nice mixed vegetable soup with the broth thickened by blending half of the black beans with some of the broth. This makes a big batch and freezes well. You can reduce prep time by using frozen vegetables.....For each can of low sodium broth, I substitute 2 cups water, 1 tablespoon VegiZest (from drfuhrman.com) and 1/8 teaspoon salt (optional).

• Ready In: 1 hr 20 mins
• Serves: 10

Ingredients

• 4 (15 ounce) cans  low-sodium black beans, divided
• 1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 3 (15 ounce) cans  low sodium vegetable broth, divided
• 1  large onion, chopped
• 2  carrots, chopped
• 1  stalk celery, chopped
• 4  garlic cloves, chopped
• 6  mushrooms, chopped
• 1  tablespoon chili powder
• 1⁄2 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1  pinch black pepper
• 1 1⁄2 cups frozen corn

Directions

1. Puree 2 cans of beans, tomatoes and 1 can of broth and add to large soup pot (at least 6 quarts). I puree with an immersion blender right in the pot.
2. Add remaining two cans of beans, two cans of broth and the rest of the ingredients to the pot.
3. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently to prevent the bottom from sticking and burning.
4. Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.