Meatless Monday: Black Bean Soup and Pita Chips

So tonight was my last crazy Monday for awhile. My darling girl has dance rehearsal from 5-6 and then basketball from 6-7. My husband helps coach the basketball team so we all go to the park together. Before I left the house I put a one pound bag (sorted and rinsed) of black beans into the pressure cooker. I added a half an onion (chopped) several baby carrots, and some chopped celery, 1 bay leaf and teaspoon of cumin and a 1 teaspoon of chili powder. I put it on high pressure for 30 minutes. My pressure cooker is a self contained unit which turns off after the allotted time and allows the pressure to come down naturally (best for beans) and then switches to a "keep warm" setting. So when we walked in the soup was almost ready to go.

I added about 1/4 C of tomato salsa to the soup, about 1 1/2 C of frozen corn niblets, and a few dashes of worcestershire sauce. I stirred and tasted and realized I had forgotten to add salt. I never cook beans with salt because they can make the beans tough and not cook properly. Once salted this soup can be served with a garnish of sour cream, cheese or scallions or any mixture of those three things. We also had some pita chips. Light and yummy, it was a good dinner for a busy night!