Black Bean Soup

[alexcat]

We had this for dinner this week.

Black Bean Soup
Ingredients
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 2 celery ribs, diced
• 1 medium carrot, diced
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• ½ teaspoon chili powder
• 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, including the liquid in the cans
• 2 chipotle peppers from a can of chipotles in adobo sauce, chopped, plus 2 tablespoons sauce* (I used a few slices of fresh jalapeno pepper instead)
• 1½ cups vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, plus wedges for serving
• Optional toppings: avocado, cilantro, sour cream, or vegan sour cream, pickled onions, serrano peppers, pepitas

Instructions:
1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrot, salt, and several grinds of pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 15 minutes, or until soft. Add the garlic, cumin, coriander, and chili powder and stir for 30 seconds. Stir in the beans and their liquid, chipotles, adobo sauce, and broth. Simmer for 30 minutes.
2. Let cool slightly, then transfer half of the soup to a blender. Puree until smooth, then add it back to the pot with the remaining soup and stir. Alternatively, use an immersion blender to puree half the soup in the pot. Stir in the lime juice.
3. Season to taste and serve with lime wedges and desired toppings.
Notes
*If you're sensitive to spice, feel free to scale back to one chipotle pepper.