Haiti: Pumpkin and Black Bean Soup

Quick. Easy. Tasty. Caribbean. Seriously, this is one of the fastest recipes I've made in a while, and you would never know it. Since most of your ingredients come in cans, the most time-consuming step is chopping the cilantro! This soup has a to-die-for velvety texture, and multiple levels of flavor. Yum-oh-yum.

What you'll need:

1 tsp. ground cumin

Just a dash of olive oil

15 oz. canned pumpkin

15 oz. can black beans, drained

14 oz. can light, unsweetened coconut milk

1 cup vegetable stock

3 tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped (plus more for garnish)

3 tsp. lime juice

1 tsp. salt

.5 tsp. black pepper

Step 1: Heat a splash of olive oil in a medium pot.

Step 2: Add cumin and stir for a few seconds to release flavor.

Step 3: Quickly (so cumin doesn't burn!), add pumpkin, beans, coconut milk, vegetable stock, and cilantro.

Step 4: Bring to a boil, stirring.

Step 5: Reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes.

Step 6: Stir in lime juice, salt and pepper, adjusting to taste.

I used a hand blender to give the soup a bit more consistency, but this is optional. Also, if you like citrus flavor in food more than I do, you can add a bit of zest from the lime as well.

(Thank you to friendseat.com for this recipe!)