Bean And Bacon Soup

Total Time: 2 hrs 30 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients

• 1 lb beans, dried and soaked see note
• 1/2 lb bacon, ends and pieces,chopped fine
• 4 medium onions, chopped
• 4 stalks celery, chopped
• 4 large carrots, peel and diced
• 1 lb plum tomato, diced
• 1 gallon stock or 1 gallon water
• 1 smoked ham hock
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon thyme, leaf
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 lb smoked sausage, sliced (optional)

Recipe

• 1 preparation check the beans for stones.
• 2 pour boiling water over beans and let stand 1 hour or soak overnight and drain.
• 3 finely chop the bacon ends and pieces, or fat saved from a smoked ham, and cook it on a medium fire in a big pot to render the fat.
• 4 be sure the crumbs of fat are nicely browned, like crisp bacon.
• 5 add the cut up veggies (you can change the amounts to suit yourself, and add others too, ad lib) and saute in the fat.
• 6 add a few cloves of mashed garlic if you like it.
• 7 drain the beans and rinse them.
• 8 add the water or stock, beans and ham hock and herbs and spices.
• 9 bring to the boil, simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, maybe even more depending on beans, until they are very tender.
• 10 cut the fat and skin from the ham hock and dice it and return to the soup.
• 11 i often cook a couple of extra ones and have beans and hocks as a meal.
• 12 season with salt and pepper.
• 13 you can skim the fat, but in the cold winter, it tastes good.
• 14 the colder it is, the better you will like fatty soups.
• 15 if you cook it long enough, the beans and everything will break down and puree, combining with the fat to make a"creamy" consistency, that is much admired by"beanies.
• 16 "i like to finish the soup with sliced kielbasa.