Black Bean Soup

I am a big fan of making homemade soup -- I am an even bigger fan when making that soup takes 20 minutes from start to finish!  The other great thing about this recipe is it makes four portions -- a little more convenient for a single gal like myself.  Sometimes when I make soup, I feel like I eat it all week and still end up freezing some.  I ended up halving this recipe because I didn't want to eat soup for every meal of my 3-day work week.  That's right -- I'm off to San Francisco on Thursday morning and I am THIS excited!!!

Black Bean Soup
Source:  fresh365
Yields:  4 servings

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
2  15 ounce cans black beans, drained & rinsed
15 ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
1 1/2 cup vegetable broth
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 handful chopped, cilantro
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, for garnish
Cilantro for garnish, optional

Directions
In a large pan, heat olive oil over medium. Add onion and garlic, and cook 6-8 minutes, until beginnning to brown. Stir in cumin and chili powder. Add black beans, diced tomatoes, vegetable broth, salt and cilantro. Bring to a boil, and allow to cook for 2 minutes.

Transfer 1 cup of soup to a blender, and process until smooth. Stir back into soup. Remove from heat, and serve topped with shredded cheese and cilantro.