Craving soup to warm your bones and soothe your soul, but don’t have a lot of energy left at the end of the day? This easy butternut black bean soup can transform 2 cans of beans and a jar of salsa into a hearty, satisfying bowl of soup in no time! The sweet butternut squash really contrasts nicely with the earthy beans and spicy salsa.
This soup is even easier if you get yourself some of the butternut squash that’s already peeled and chopped. I’ve seen butternut squash like that in the produce room in Costco and I have to admit, I’ve been tempted to buy it, but I just can’t in good conscience do that with all the butternut squash I have sitting around my house. They were gifts from my mom and dad’s garden and there are oh so many more I am welcome to take each time I visit them. Their garage is still packed with squash and pumpkins from our autumn harvest.
I made this soup one day on a whim, when I realized I had too much fresh salsa in my fridge … way more than I was going to eat before it went bad. And it’s wintertime and I work from home, so sharing with coworkers doesn’t work so well and catching the neighbors at home is tricky, plus I don’t even know if they like hot, spicy salsa like I do. On top of that, I have all this squash and pumpkin ahead of me. I need to find new ways to use it before I get bored of it!
A little voice inside told me butternut squash would go well with black beans, and oooh baby I was right! My spicy fermented salsa was the perfect thing to round it all out and it totally reduced the workload. I didn’t have to go find canned tomatoes and chop peppers and measure out lots of seasonings. It was all there, right in my salsa, just waiting. I have to tell you, though, my salsa had a lot of liquid in it, so I think if you’re using a thicker salsa, you’re going to need more broth. (I made notes in the recipe about that, too!)
If you want to make your own salsa for this recipe, I have a few that are quite simple to make, but would work perfectly in this soup:
- Cilantro Almond Salsa – a fresh, simple salsa that you can whip up in a few minutes in your blender or food processor. The blended nuts add a really nice creamy undertone to the salsa. If you don’t have almonds, feel free to substitute cashews, walnuts, pumpkin seeds or other nuts.
- Copycat Chili’s Salsa – another super quick blender salsa that tastes just like the salsa you get at Chili’s restaurant, but you can adjust the heat to your liking!
- Grilled Zucchini Corn Salsa – if you want a nice smoky flavor with some extra veggies for your soup, this one’s the winner! You can roast the zucchini in the oven if you’d rather not break out the grill to make salsa, but the smoky taste from the grill adds a nice twist.
- Fermented Heirloom Salsa – a salsa full of probiotics that is really much simpler to make than you might think. The fermentation does take a few days, though, so if you want a quick salsa, try one of the recipes above.
Easy Butternut Black Bean Soup
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 35 min
- Total Time: 50 min
- Yield: About 5 servings 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
Description
A hearty plant-based soup that’s SO easy to throw together, thanks to pantry staples and pre-cubed butternut squash. Earthy black beans, sweet butternut squash and spicy salsa come together to make a soup for warming your bones and soothing your soul through the winter months.
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons olive or avocado oil
- 1/2 of a sweet onion, peeled and chopped fine
- 2 – 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped fine
- 2 cups peeled butternut squash (or other winter squash), cut into small chunks
- 1 3/4 cups spicy fresh salsa
- 1 cup chicken or vegetable broth (or more, depending on how thick your salsa is)
- 3 cups cooked black beans (or 2 cans, drained)
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 bay leaf
- Salt & pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the oil and once hot, add the onion and garlic. Saute until the onion is soft and translucent.
- Stir in the butternut squash, salsa, broth, beans, cumin and bay leaf. (If you need more liquid, add some more broth.) Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the butternut is nice and tender, about 15 – 20 minutes.
- Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot!
Notes
Because this recipe is relying on the salsa for flavor and heat, choose a spicy salsa with really good flavor.
RECIPE SOURCE: http://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/ … © Copyright 2020, Sumptuous Spoonfuls. All images & content are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to publish any of my images, please ask first. If you want to republish this recipe as your own, please re-write the recipe in your own words or link back to this post for the recipe.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: About 1 cup
- Calories: 157
Keywords: Soup, Easy, Butternut, Squash, Gluten free, Heart healthy, Black beans, Vegetarian, Vegan
