This has been a favorite of my family for several years. A big plus is that its’s cheap! This time round, I used dried beans instead of store bought canned beans. I used a 2 lb bag, and I probably could have gone with 1 lb, but we like lots of beans in ours so it was really good. I had gotten the beans on clearance at SWM for $0.88/ 2lb bag. This filled my large 6 quart pot with about 1/2 inch to spare! The whole pot costs me less than $5 since I had everything on hand, minus the jalapeno pepper, but I had ground chipotle pepper (smoked jalapeno pepper) spice in my cabinet and used that in it’s place. Turned out just fine. This meal will feed us at least 2 dinners and several lunches. I will be dividing part of it up into lunches that will go into the freezer for quick meals in the future. I did not make the sandwiches this time, but they are delicious as well!
The recipe can be found here.
Black Bean Stoup and Southwestern Monte Cristo Sandwiches
(This is Rachel Ray’s pic – I forgot to take a pic of ours last night)
Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra- virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
1 large onion, chopped
3 ribs celery with greens, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 fresh bay leaf or 1 large dried bay leaf
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
3 (15-ounce) cans black beans
2 tablespoons ground cumin, a couple of palm fulls
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander, 1/3 palm full
Salt and pepper
2 to 3 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons hot sauce, divided
1 quart chicken or vegetable stock
1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes, diced tomatoes with peppers and onions, or stewed tomatoes
1/2 lime, juiced
For sandwiches:
8 slices white sandwich bread
1/2 cup hot pepper jelly or chili sauce, tomatillo or tomato salsa, taco sauce – whichever you have on hand
8 slices honey baked ham, from the deli counter
8 slices pepper jack cheese, from the deli counter
8 slices smoked turkey, from the deli counter
2 eggs, beaten
Splash of milk
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup sour cream
2 to 3 scallions, chopped
Directions:
Heat a medium soup pot over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil to the hot pot, then onion, celery, garlic, jalapeno, and bay leaf. Cook 3 to 4 minutes, then add red peppers and continue to cook. Drain 2 cans of beans and add them. Use a fork to mash up the beans in the remaining can. Stir the mashed beans into the pot and season with cumin, coriander, salt and pepper and 2 to 3 tablespoons hot sauce. Add stock and tomatoes to the stoup and bring to a bubble. Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes over low heat. Add the lime juice. Remove and discard the bay leaf
While stoup cooks, make Monte Cristos: spread bread with a light layer of pepper jelly, chili sauce, salsa, or taco sauce. Build sandwiches using 2 slices each of ham, cheese and turkey per sandwich. Beat eggs with milk and 2 teaspoons hot sauce and season the eggs with a little salt. Heat a griddle pan or nonstick skillet over medium heat. Melt butter in skillet. Dip each sandwich in egg coating and cook 3 to 4 minutes on each side to melt cheese and warm the meats through.
Ladle up black bean soup and top with sour cream and scallions. Cut Monte Cristos corner to corner and serve alongside soup for dipping and munching.
Don’t forget to check out The Grocery Chart Challenge Recipe Swap for more great recipes!
God Bless!
Steph
(I made a quadruple batch.)
Sprinkle topping over muffins. 
My Country Haven 
