2 cup dried black beans
1 medium onion, finely diced
3 tbsp butter or oil
1 small carrot peeled and finely diced
1 celery stalk, finely diced
6 cup chicken broth
1 ham hock
1 tsp thyme
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup dry sherry
1 sour cream
1 chopped fresh dill
Directions
THE NIGHT BEFORE, place beans in a bowl, cover with 3 inches of water
and soak at least 8 hours or up to 10. Or, for a quick-cook method,
place beans in hot water for 1 hour before continuing with the
recipe. Combine onion and oil in a 2-quart pot over medium heat on
top of the stove and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add
the carrot and celery and cook another 5 minutes. Add the drained
beans, stock, ham hock, thyme. Cover, increase heat to high and bring
to a boil. Decrease heat to low and cook, covered, for 1 1/2 hours.
Place beans and liquid in a food processor or blender and puree until
smooth. Pour the puree back into the pot and add lemon juice and
sherry. Place a dollop of sour cream in each soup bowl and sprinkle
with some chopped fresh dill. Pour the piping hot soup at the table.
Servings: 8 servings
Black Bean Soup Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Bean; Soup; Vegetable
The History of Recipes
We can trace the history of meal recipes back into history, at least as far into history as the ancient Egyptians, and possibly even further than that. Interesting though that maybe, generally, these ancient cook books were just primitive pictorial, hieroglyphic or cunieform instructions for meal preparation.
In fact, the oldest recipe discovered, according to food historians are a few clay tablets in ancient Sumerian which recount the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making anyone who tried it feel `blissful`. Later on, in Roman times around 25BC a man called Apicius compiled a few scripts detailing recipes cooked by the Romans. In his publication, he describes how the meals were separated into hors d`oeuvre, main meal and afters, something we still use today. Aspicius also tells us how the cooks of Roman times used many spices and herbs, including many that are still in use today like bay, fennel and dill. Later on in the 1400s, knights returning from the crusades brought us many spices and herbs from the holy lands, such as coriander, parsley, and rosemary. These new spices and herbs prompted an explosion in manuscripts on cooking, most of which are now in academic collections. For the next few years, the wealthy families of Wesstern Europe competed to offer the most exotic meals, and consequentially cooks and their recipes could command a high salary. Even so, it wasn`t until the 19th century that cooking and recipe books became really popular. Mrs Beeton in the UK, and Fannie Farmer in the US, devoted their lives to collating, testing, and recording recipes to allow everyone to enjoy them. By the advent of the twentieth century, recipe publications are in great demand, mostly due to better eduction, more free time and having more money to spend. |
We hope you enjoy this Black Bean Soup recipe.
