Black Bean and Corn Soup

I went to the local Market on Sunday which, by the way, is the greatest thing for a foodie like myself. I bought 2 small tubs of goat cheese, a bar of peppermint soap, a bag of kettle corn and 4 ears of corn. Since then I’ve eaten almost all of the goat cheese, used the peppermint soap, eaten the entire bag of kettle corn but have done nothing with the corn so I decided on a soup given the brand new cold spell that dramatically swooped in through the area and forced me to turn on the heat so I could knock out the chill in the air…..pant, pant, breathe, breathe.

Black Bean and Corn Soup. I deviated a little from her recipe because well, I had the fresh corn and my grocery store didn’t have an Anaheim pepper. My kitchen was a hot mess after all of it but it was worth it.

• 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1-2 cups water, depending on desired consistency
• 1/4 red onion, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 poblano pepper, de-seeded and chopped
• 4 fresh ears of corn, cut off the cob
• 15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne)
• 1/2 tablespoon ground coriander
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon plus 1/8 teaspoon salt
• Juice from 1/2 a lime
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, measured (not packed) then chopped
• Finely shredded Mexican or Colby Jack cheese

Boil broth and water in a medium stockpot. Add onion, bell pepper, poblano pepper, corn and cayenne pepper to water. Return to a boil then reduce and simmer for 10 minutes. Then add beans, spices and salt. Stir and simmer for another 5 minutes. Transfer 2 1/2 cups of soup to a blender and puree until smooth. Transfer mixture back to pot and add cilantro and lime juice. Salt and pepper to taste. *I added an additional 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.