Simple Ham and Bean Soup

I have another crock pot recipe for y'all today, except it is soup! Yummy, simply yummy soup! I love making soups in the crock pot, this one is probably my favorite one to make. It's the first time this fall I have made it and it makes your house smell so good!

Your tum tum will be growling all day long and then thanking you after you have fed it!

My hubs was over his sisters house one day that I was out of town and ate some soup that she had made, he raved about it when I got home, so I thought I would give it a shot and try it out for myself. For the most part its just like hers the way I make mine, I add a couple more different ingredients than she does. The great thing about this recipe is that you could always add even more variations to it if you wanted to as far as maybe you wanna add some carrots to it, or maybe some potatoes or even different seasonings, I don't think you could go wrong any way you do it. So play with it how you will, add what ya like or make it like I make mine, either way it's awesome!

1 lb dried navy beans

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 smoked ham hocks (mine were about 2 lbs all together)

5 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled (2 tbs bacon grease reserved)

32 ounces low sodium chicken broth

3 cloves of garlic, minced

2 cups water

1 tbs dry mustard

2 bay leaves

1 tbs parsley

1 tbs "Tony" creole seasoning

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Soak your beans over night according to the package directions with 1/2 tsp baking soda. Or if your like me, you forgot to soak them over night so you wake up frantic the next morning! The way I did it was sort thru the beans for any weird things lurking in there with them, rinse, quick boil them boil for 3 minutes with the baking soda and let sit covered for 1 hour. While your waiting on those to sit there, make your bacon. (I put mine in the oven at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes-it's such an easier and cleaner way of doing it!) Reserve your 2 tbs of bacon grease. Spray your crock pot on the sides with cooking spray and then add your bacon grease to the bottom of it. (If this sounds gross to you, you could omit it, it just gives it a little more of that bacon flavor to it) Sit your ham hocks in there. Rinse off your beans and drain and pour over ham hocks. Add in your seasonings and minced garlic. Pour in your chicken broth and water. Cover and simmer on low for 7 hours.

When it's been 7 hours, take 1/2 of the beans out of the crock pot and give them a good mash or you can puree them. This is to thicken up the soup a little more. Add it back to the crock pot. Take your ham hocks out and take the fat off. You will have a little bit of ham mixed in there that shreds easily and then you will add it back to your crock pot. Also add in the crumbled bacon. Cook for one more hour on low. (I put my crock pot on for 8 hours and just make a mental note after 7 hours to do all this).

Serve along side with some sweet corn bread and you have you one dang good bowl of soup! Perfect for the fall and winter time to cozy up with!

Everyone have a wonderful weekend!

It's craft show weekend time for me here and I even convinced hubs to go with me.

It's a Miracle!

-Kirby Nicole-

This is linked up with girlichef!