Ingredients:

1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 pound dried black beans
6 ounces diced tofu
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 large carrot, diced
2 stalks celery chopped
2 fresh peppers diced; Anaheim, jalapeno, bananna or habanjero; to taste
1 clove garlic, minced
4 cups vegetable stock
10 cups water
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp mexican oregano
1 tsp hot chili powder
1 tsp cayenne
1 Tblsp fresh cilantro, finely chopped

Sort beans and then place them in a medium size sauce pan. Cover beans with water, then bring to a boil. Continue boiling for 3-5 minutes. Remove from the hear and let stand for at least 1 hour.

In a large soup pot, sautee the onions and peppers in the vegetable oil. Add the beans and remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. If the soup appears to be getting a little dry, add additional water or beer.

Before serving puree part or all of the soup in a blender. Then return the pureed soup to the pot and reheat. Serve garnished with fresh cilantro, thinly sliced chili peppers, diced tomatoes, finely chopped onion and sour cream.

Note: the soup can easily become a non-vegetarian dish by substituting 1 cup of diced ham for the tofu and 2 cans of chicken stock for the vegetable stock.