WHITE BEAN AND HAM SOUP
2 pounds dried white beans, like Great Northern
1 ham bone with meat
1 large onion, diced
1 cup diced carrots
2 stalks of celery, diced
2 dried bay leaves
1 can chicken broth
6 cups of water
salt and pepper to taste
Rinse beans and place in soup pot. Add water to cover. Bringing to a boil, turn off burner, cover and let soak for 1 hour. Pour off the water. Place the beans back in the soup pot on the burner. Add the ham bone, the chicken broth and the water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover.
Add diced onion, chopped celery & carrots to the pot with the bay leaves. Cook, covered for about 1 1/2 hours, or until the beans are tender. Beans will smash easily against the side of the pan when they are done.
Remove the ham bone from the beans and cool until cool enough to handle. Take a big spoon and smash some beans against the side of the pan and stir them back in. Do several times until the soup begins to look creamy.
After the ham bone has cooled enough, take the meat off the bone and discard any fat. Put the ham into the soup and season well with salt and pepper.
