Cooking dried beans is low maintenance and a great value. Make sure to plan ahead and allow time for soaking the beans. Serve with hot sauce or salsa, if you like. This is a Health Starts Here recipe.

Serves 8

• 1 pound dried black beans (about 2 1/2 cups), rinsed
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 1 large red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
• 1/2 ripe avocado, chopped

1. Soak the beans overnight or 6 to 8 hours prior to cooking. Drain and rinse.
2. In a large pot, bring 1/2 cup water to a simmer over medium-high heat. Add onions, bell pepper and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until onions are translucent and beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in cumin and chipotle and cook 1 minute, stirring. Add drained beans and 10 cups water.
3. Bring soup to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until beans are tender.
4. Remove 4 cups soup and carefully purée in a blender. Return purée to pot and stir in cilantro, nutritional yeast and lime juice. Spoon into bowls for serving and garnish with avocado.