Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar
Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar

Day two of the Handmade Holiday 2015 series, and I think we’re already settling into a themeโ€”gifts that keep people cozy. Yesterday, it was the No Sew Flannel Blanket Scarf tutorial. And today, I’m showing you how to warm your loved ones from the inside out with a hearty Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar.

Melissa from Bless This Mess (my partner-in-crime in this handmade gifting spree) is showing off how to make super easy, super awesome Simple DIY Beeswax Candles to help cozy up your home, too. These candles burn so clean and smell like warm honey. Who doesn’t want their house smelling like warm honey? I know I do! I can’t wait to make some of those candles to gift to myself!

Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar

But let’s get back to what’s happening over here. This soup mix is so easy to put together, and the resulting soup is SO tasty and SO easy to make! Unlike a lot of soup mixes in a jar, this one comes with everything you need to make the soup. All you add is water (plus any toppings you want). It seems hard to believe that something so simple could be so delicious, but it is packed with flavor! We love this soup (especially when served up with some cornbread).

When I told Melissa that I was going to do a soup in a jar for our week of handmade gifts, she said that she loves things like this because, by the time Christmas rolls around, she is so sick of cookies and cake and fudge. I am totally the same way! The sentiment of tray after tray of cookies is nice, but right around December 17th each year, I start to crave veggies and water and healthier optionsโ€”like a hearty, fiber-packed black bean soup. It’s a great option for everyone on your list, because you can easily customize it to be vegan and gluten-free!

Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar

Let me show you how easy this soup in a jar is to put together. First up, gather your supplies.

Supplies

For each jar (which serves six people), you’ll need:

  • 1 wide mouth quart jar with lid (a canning jar, flip-top jar, or even a clean jar from mayo or spaghetti sauce would work)
  • 3 cups dried black beans (about 1 1/2 pounds)
  • 1 cup dried navy or great northern beans (about 1/2 pound)
  • 12″ x 12″ piece of parchment paper
  • Rubber band
  • 1 tablespoon dried onion flakes (like these)
  • 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 2 tablespoons cumin
  • 1/4โ€“1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (depending on how spicy you’d like it)
  • 1 teaspoon celery seed
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • 4 chicken or veggie boullion cubes (this vegan brand is great)
  • Cardstock and a printer, for the tag (download the PDF)
  • Twine
  • Short wooden spoon, optional (like these)

Step One: Layer the Beans

Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar

Fill your clean jar with 3/4 cup black beans, followed by 1/3 cup white beans, and then repeat, ending with the last 3/4 cup of black beans.

Wholefully Protip

Honestly, you could just use 100% black beans, and the recipe would be just as awesome. The only reason I use white beans is so the jar looks all pretty with the layers!

Step Two: Make the Spice Packet

Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar

Place all the spices in the middle of the piece of parchment paper. Then, roll up the sides to make a little packet. Secure the packet closed with a rubber band. You can also use a small zip-top plastic bag for this, if you prefer.

Step 3: Stuff the Jar

Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar

Stuff the closed packet into the top of the jar. You might have to use a little elbow grease to get it in there, but it’ll go. Then close up your jar.

Step Four: Add Tag and Spoon

Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar

I created a PDF with the tags that you can download for free. I printed mine out on heavy kraft paper card stock. Cut out the label, use a hole punch to punch where the “x” is, and then tie it onto the jar with twine or ribbon.

If you’d like to make your own tags, here are the directions. Feel free to copy and paste into your own design:

In a large stock pot, combine the beans, spice packet contents, and 12 cups of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1ยฝโ€“2 hours, stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender and the soup is thick. You might need to add more water as the beans cook. Adjust seasonings if necessary. Serve topped with sour cream and diced avocado. Great with tortilla chips or cornbread on the side.

Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar

I think adding the wooden spoon to the side of the jar is a nice touch, so if you want to do the same, just tie the spoon on to the side with the twine.

Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar

And that’s it! Your gift jars are complete. You could easily pump out a bunch of these, assembly line style, in less than an hour.

Make sure to come back tomorrow, when Handmade Holiday week continues. Tomorrow I’m back with another food gift that is perfect for all the healthy foodies on your list! See you then.

Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar

Spicy Black Bean Soup In a Jar

Yield: 1 jar (serves 6)
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes

Give the gift of cozy, vegetarian soup this holiday season with Spicy Black Bean Soup in a Jar. They are easy to make, beautiful, and healthy!

Ingredients

For the Soup:

  • 3 cups dried black beans (about 1 1/2 pounds)
  • 1 cup dried navy or great northern beans (about 1/2 pound)
  • 1 tablespoon dried onion flakes (like these)
  • 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 2 tablespoons cumin
  • 1/4โ€“1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (depending on how spicy youโ€™d like it)
  • 1 teaspoon celery seed
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • 4 chicken or veggie boullion cubes (this vegan brand is great)

To Package for Gifting:

  • 1 wide mouth quart jar with lid (a canning jar, flip-top jar, or even a clean jar from mayo or spaghetti sauce would work)
  • 12โ€ณ x 12โ€ณ piece of parchment paper
  • Rubber band
  • Cardstock and a printer, for the tag (download the PDF)
  • Twine
  • Short wooden spoon, optional (like these)

Instructions

  1. Fill your clean jar with 3/4 cup black beans, followed by 1/3 cup white beans, and then repeat, ending with the last 3/4 cup of black beans.
  2. Place all the spices in the middle of the piece of parchment paper. Then, roll up the sides to make a little packet. Secure the packet closed with a rubber band. You can also use a small zip-top plastic bag for this, if you prefer.
  3. Stuff the closed packet into the top of the jar. You might have to use a little elbow grease to get it in there, but it’ll go. Then close up your jar.
  4. Print out the tags (which you can download for free) on heavy kraft paper or card stock. Cut out the label, use a hole punch to punch where the “x” is, and then tie it onto the jar with twine or ribbon.
  5. If adding the wooden spoon to your gift, tie it on to the side with the twine.
  6. That's it—your gift jar is complete!

Notes

  • E๏ปฟach jar makes enough soup to serve six people.
  • T๏ปฟo make the soup: In a large stock pot, combine the beans, spice packet contents, and 12 cups of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1ยฝโ€“2 hours, stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender and the soup is thick. You might need to add more water as the beans cook. Adjust seasonings if necessary. Serve topped with sour cream and diced avocado. Great with tortilla chips or cornbread on the side.

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43 Comments

  1. Hello,
    Can this soup be made it the crackpot? And if so for how long would I need to cook it on low?

    Thank you,
    Melanie

    1. Hi Melanie! We haven’t made this in the crockpot ourselves, but we would say 6-8 hours on low or 4-6 on high should work. You might want to keep an eye on it the first time you try it out, though, just to be sure!

  2. I am curious. This recipe is different than the one on the 6 jar soup mixes. Specifically, this recipe calls for 4 cups of beans & 2 table spoons of cumin, and the 6 jar post calls for one and half cups of beans and 2 table spoons of cumin. I am afraid the jars I made have too much cumin..? Or was that much cumin intentional?

    1. Hi Tracy! Our offices were closed for the end of the year, so we just saw your question now. That much cumin is definitely intentional! Beans need a hefty amount of spice to really take on the flavor. We hope you were able to cook one up and test it if you were concerned. And we hope your gift recipients loved them!

  3. I am interested in “soups in a jar” and wondering
    what is the volume of soup for your spicy black bean soup recipe?
    How many people would that feed?
    Also what is shelf life of the mix?
    should the jar be sealed with an oxygen absorber?

    1. Hi Rose! Each jar makes enough soup to feed six. Everything in the mix is shelf-stable, so they’ll stay good for quite a while! The main thing to consider is that the older the beans, the longer they’ll take to cook, and the older the spices, the less flavorful they’ll be. So while the mix isn’t likely to go off, you may need to make some adjustments when you cook it if it has been sitting on a shelf for a whileโ€”like adding more water as needed and possibly adjusting the spices to punch up the flavor! We haven’t found it necessary to use an oxygen absorber with these before. Just a tight sealing lid should be fine! I hope this helps =)

  4. I wanted to print your recipe for black bean soup. The site made this very difficult.
    Your idea is useful, easy and fun to have as a gift for a sick friend.
    Thanks for sharing…but how do I print it?

    1. Hi, Mimi! We donโ€™t have any specific print features on this post. Your best bet will be to use the print function on your browser to print out what you need. I hope this helps!

    1. I believe you would just need to double check all your spices and seasonings to make sure they are gluten-free.

    2. The link for the vegetable bouillon cubes look like they are extra large cubes (serving size= 1/2 cube) so would you need 8 cubes if you bought regular cubes, would you double the amount you add to the soup?

      1. Hi Tracie! Hopefully you figured this out already, but I’ll add our response in case anyone else has the same question: The recipe is written for regular size cubes! The ones we had were large so we used one instead of two. If you have regular sized cubes, then you can just follow the recipe as written!