Black Bean & Sausage Soup

Mmmmmm....my favourite soup of all time, from my trusty Better Homes and Gardens cookbook.

I introduced one of my best friends to this soup, and she fell in love with it as well.  It's our comfort food.  If we're down, one of us will whip it up for the other.  This soup makes me happy - I could eat it and eat it and eat it...hence why I double the recipe. 

My friend uses a can of mixed beans instead of black beans, which can be a nice colourful variation.

(Don't let my poor webcam picture throw you off!)

I use the quick version, with the black beans already cooked from a can (just remember to always rinse your beans & the extra salt off before adding them to your soup!).  Quick and easy!

2 - 15oz can Black Beans  (Canada, ours comes in 19 oz., so I use 3 cans when I triple the recipe)
1.5 c. chicken broth
2 c. water
1 c. chopped onion (one large)
1 c. chopped celery (2 stalks)
1 tsp. ground coriander
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp red pepper *
4 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp. already diced garlic)
8 oz cooked, smoked, Polish or turkey sausage (I usually can't find this, so I use garlic sausage)

*If you don't want it too spicy for your kids, omit this the red pepper or use black pepper, or add only little bits at a time until it's how you like.

Combine everything (except sausage) in a large pot, bring to boil.  Simmer for 15 minutes until veggies are cooked.  Add sausage and heat through.  Serve with dollops of sour cream (optional, but ever so yummy!).

Chickpea Tabbouleh Salad

My DH & I just love this salad.  Love love love!  It has everything you need in it, and it's so easy to just shove in a container and run out the door.

I'm all about simple meals, so I serve this as an entire meal (though I believe it's normally an appetizer).  My 2 sons are in a "I hate this" phase and are no longer obsessed about chick peas, so instead of serving this with toasted pita bread, I've started serving it with tortilla chips, which I only give out 3-5 at a time to bribe more bites of salad out of them.  My DD only 14 months, can't get enough of this salad - yay for one kid not complaining!

Here's my variation from the original recipe from Canadian Living.

Ingredients 

1 c. couscous (this is my variation - the original recipe calls for bulgur)

1 can drained and rinsed chickpea

2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1 c. diced English cucumbers

1 c. minced fresh Italian parsley

1/2 c. chopped green onions

1/4 c. chopped fresh mint

Dressing

1/4 c. lemon juice

2 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

(Don't be too generous with your lemon juice - it can be very strong!)

Preparation:

In saucepan, bring 1-1/3 cups water to boil; stir in couscous. Remove from heat; cover and cook for 5 minutes or until no liquid remains. Transfer to large bowl, fluffing with fork. Let cool to room temperature.

Add chickpeas, tomatoes, cucumber, parsley, onions and mint.

Dressing:

In small bowl, whisk together lemon juice, oil, garlic, salt and pepper; pour over couscous mixture and toss to combine.