Black Bean And Sausage Soup

• for the soup:
• 1 pound dried black beans
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 3/4 pound smoked kielbasa, cut into bite sized chunks
• 3 medium carrots, cut into 1/2" chunks
• 1 medium onion, peeled and diced
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 bay leaves
• 4-5 cups chicken or vegetable stock
• for garnish (optional)
• fresh cilantro leaves
• diced avocado
• hot sauce (such as Crystal)
• saltines or oyster crackers

1. Place black beans in a large pot and cover with water, soak overnight until beans have doubled in volume. Rinse and drain beans. Set aside.
2. In a large dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add the smoked sausage and cook 4-5 minutes until it starts to render some fat and starts to brown.
3. Add the carrots, onion and jalapeno. Cook 3-4 minutes until vegetables start to soften, stirring occasionally.
4. Stir in the cumin and tomato paste and cook until vegetables and sausage are coated and mixture is fragrant.
5. Add the beans, bay leaves and stock. Cover and heat to boiling. Reduce heat to a simmer and continue cooking, stirring occasionally for 2 -2 1/2 hours until beans are tender.
6. Serve with fresh cilantro leaves, diced avocado and/or a few dashes of hot sauce, if desired. Saltines reinforce the homey nature of this soup!

black beans, olive oil, kielbasa, carrots, onion, ground cumin, tomato paste, bay leaves, chicken, cilantro, avocado, hot sauce, oyster crackers

Taken from food52.com/recipes/34305-black-bean-and-sausage-soup (may not work)