Step 1

Rinse the beans and place them in a bowl with water. The water should cover the beans by 3-4 inches. Soak the beans overnight or for 10-12 hours.

Step 2

Drain the soaked beans and rinse them a few times. Transfer the beans into a cooking pot, fill it with water to cover the beans by 1 inch. Bring the beans to a boil, then reduce to simmer for 1-2 hours. One hour into the cooking remove 3 beans from the pot and taste them. If all of them are soft - beans are ready.

Step 3

Drain the beans reserving all cooking liquid. Return half of the beans to a cooking pot and mash them with a potato masher.

Step 4

Pulse the walnuts in a food processor until they are a size of a buckwheat seed or smaller. If you don't have a food processor, you can chop the walnuts by hand or add them to a plastic bag, seal it and pound with a rollin pin.

Step 5

Heat olive oil in a large saute pan and over medium heat. Add onion and sauce for 10 minutes until it's soft and translucent. Add beans, walnuts, Hmeli-Suneli, Cayenne pepper, 1 cup of tomato juice and Balsamic vinegar. Give everything a nice stir and add more tomato juice if necessary to thin out Lobio. Add salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Step 6

Add garlic pushed through a garlic press, cilantro, stir for 30 seconds and remove from the heat. Lobio is ready.