Black Bean Slow Cooker Soup and some Cornbread

I’ve touted the ever wonderful and time-saving kitchen tool before. With a slow cooker, or crockpot, all you have to do is chop some stuff up, throw it together, set it and forget it! And poof, your meal is ready and waiting when you get home. Whether that’s oatmeal, French onion soup, or enchiladas, you really can’t go wrong, especially if you’re feeling particularly lazy.

I was lazy yesterday. But the savior of our very old slow cooker came to the rescue! What resulted was a black bean and vegetable soup. While that was cooking, I threw together a new twist on one of my favorites: cornbread. Off to Zumba I went, and when I got back, my house smelled amazing, and dinner was just begging to be eaten! What’s even better is the high protein content of this VEGAN soup. Crazy, right? Yeah, vegan meals can be packed with protein and nutrients – don’t let sceptics tell you otherwise!

Enjoy a lazy day, and make this soup! You won’t even have to heat up the house with stove burners, so this a perfect summer (or any time) meal. Oh, and this version of cornbread uses fresh corn on the cob! What a great way to use up those extra cobs sitting in your fridge, eh?

Hot and steamy and oh so good.

Black Bean Slow Cooker Soup

Serves 4

• 2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 C salsa of your choosing (or chop up a big tomato)
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp Sriracha sauce (or to your liking – we enjoy some heat)
• 1 tbsp oregano
• freshly cracked sea salt & black pepper, about 1 tsp each
• 2.5 C water
• optional: any other veggies you have and would enjoy! Broccoli, corn, mushrooms, more bell pepper, etc.

Get out your slow cooker or crockpot, and dump all ingredients into it. Stir well, cover, and set on “high” for 2-4 hours. Mine cooked for about 3 hours and was perfect. If you want to prep this in the morning, and eat for dinner, set it on “low” for 6-8 hours. You don’t even have to stir it!

Spoon into bowls, let cool, and enjoy.

Nutrition info, according to MyFitnessPal: 1 serving = 251 calories, 47g carbs, 1g fat, 14g protein, 11g fiber and 5g sugar. Pretty darn healthy 🙂

That cornbread is perfect for dunking!

Hot outta the oven!

Corn off the Cob Cornbread, a combination from an earlier post, and Cooking on the Side

Makes 12 muffins, or one 8×8 pan

• 1 C cornmeal 
• 1 C whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 6 stevia packets (1/4 C granulated sugar)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 egg
• 1/4 C plain nonfat Greek yogurt
• 1 C skim milk
• 2 ears of corn, husks and silks removed

Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease a muffin tin or an 8×8 glass pan.

In a large mixing bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, stevia, baking powder and salt. Mix well.

In a smaller bowl, beat egg and yogurt together. Add in the milk and whisk to combine. Add milk mixture to flour mixture; stir just until blended. Stir in the corn kernels.

Pour batter into prepared pan. If you’re making muffins, fill each cup to the rim – they’ll rise and turn out nice and tall.

For muffins, bake for 20 minutes. For 8×8 pan, bake 25 minutes.

Allow to cool IN the pan for at least 15 minutes before removing to cool completely. Serve warm, or cold as leftovers. Dunk into the soup above, and you’re ready to chow down!

Nutrition Info according to MyFitnessPal: 1 muffin = 103 calories, 20g carbs, 1g fat, 4g protein, 3g fiber, and 1g sugar. Again, decent!

Mmmmmm so yummy.

Cornbread. Made with corn on the cob. In the shape of corn on the cob. WHOA.

Weight confession: I’ve gained 4 pounds in the past 12 days , and no, it’s not muscle. I blame Memphis and GermanFest. So it’s time I kick it into high gear! Any tips or advice for “getting back on the wagon?” I’ll happily take them.