Cook The Book: Rick Bayless'S Black Bean Soup

• 3/4 pound (1 1/2 cups) dried black beans, picked over
• 12 cups water
• 6 ounces (about 1 link) Mexican-style chorizo, casing removed and crumbled
• 1 stalk fennel, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 chipotle chiles in adobo, chopped
• 4 teaspoons salt, or more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 12 medium shrimp, peeled and deveined if necessary
• 5 corn tostadas, broken up or a handful of corn tortilla chips
• 1/2 cup crumbled queso fresco or cheddar cheese

1. In a large pot, place the beans and cover with 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then turn the heat off and let the beans sit for 1 hour. Drain.
2. Return the beans to the pot and cover with the remaining 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low, stir in the chorizo, fennel, onion, and chipotle chiles in adobo, partially cover, and simmer until the beans are tender, about 2 hours.
3. Transfer the soup to a blender, in batches if necessary, and blend until it forms a smooth puree. Return the soup to the pot, add the salt and pepper, stir, and heat over medium heat until hot, then add the shrimp and cook until they are orange-red, 3 to 4 minutes. Serve the soup in individual bowls garnished with the tostadas and crumbled cheese.

black beans, water, chorizo, stalk fennel, onion, chiles, salt, freshly ground black pepper, shrimp, corn tostadas, queso fresco

Taken from www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2010/01/rick-baylesss-black-bean-soup-recipe.html (may not work)