ButterYum's Ham and Bean Soup

from ButterYum

serves 6-8

Ingredients

Ham Stock:

• Ham Bone

• 10-12 cups cold water

• 1 medium onion, roughly chopped (onion trimmings and skin too)

• 4 cloves of garlic, smashed (just give them a good whack to make them split open)

• 2 bay leaves

• 1 tablespoon dried parsley

Soup:

• 1 pound dried beans - pre-soaked overnight, or quick-soaked as directed below

• 1 large onion, diced

• 4 carrots, peeled and diced

• 8 cups ham stock

• 1 bay leaf

• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

• 2 tablespoons dried parsley, divided

• 3 cups leftover ham, diced into bite-size pieces (about 1 pound)

• salt to taste (don't add until serving)

Directions

1. Place ham bone in and cover with 10-12 cups of cold water.

2. Add the onions, garlic, parsley, and bay leaves.

3. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for 60-90 minutes.

4. Rinse dried beans in cold water, removing any icky looking beans, stems, small stones, etc.

5. Place the beans in a pot large enough so they can be covered with 2 inches of cold water.

6. Bring to a boil, turn off heat, cover, let beans soak for 1 hour, drain. The beans should have swelled quite a bit and should be softening, although they shouldn't be soft enough to eat yet.

7. In a 6-quart a or larger soup pot, saute the onions and carrots in 1 tablespoons of oil until they soften and begin to caramelize.

8. Add the beans, 8 cups of ham stock, bay leaf, thyme, pepper, and 1 tablespoon of dried parsley.

9. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to a gentle roll and cook for 1-2 hours or until the beans are soft and creamy.

10. Add leftover ham and remaining dried parsley (1 tablespoon); heat cook for a few minutes more until the ham is heated through.

11. Taste carefully and season with salt and pepper.

Note - 1 pound of dried beans equals about 3-4 cans of rinsed and drained beans. Leftover ham stock can be frozen for future use, or you can use it to cook dried beans which can also be frozen for future use.