As promised, here’s a nice ham and bean soup recipe for those of you with leftover holiday ham. This is a real basic recipe, so use as a guide rather than a recipe set in stone. 

If it’s a honey glazed ham, you’ll notice a slight difference in taste – not exactly sweet but maybe a bit more mellow. 

Now if you don’t have leftover ham, no worries. Just increase the amount of chopped ham and you’re good to go. 

As far as the beans go, great northern are the most popular, but pinto or navy beans work well, too. Or really whatever you have in the pantry. 

Dried and soaked or canned? You choose. 

Here’s a tip: if using dried, soak some extra and freeze the rest. 

As far as pureeing the soup to make it thicker, you can do that at the end with a hand blender or potato masher. Use a light hand when pureeing. Don’t make it too smooth. 

My German husband, Frank, always adds a splash of red wine vinegar to bean soups. You might like that, too. Gives a bit of tanginess to the flavor. 

As we segue into December, I’ll be sharing readers’ favorites for gifts from the kitchen. If you have any to share, please do. +

Simple ham & bean soup

Ingredients

Olive oil

1 ham bone plus 4 cups leftover ham, cut up or 6 cups ham, chopped

2 cups dry great northern, pinto or navy beans or 3-4 cans

2 cups each: celery and carrots, diced

1 large onion, diced (about 2 cups)

3 cloves garlic, minced – up to 3 teaspoons

2 bay leaves (optional)

8-9 cups chicken broth, low sodium

Canned tomatoes (optional) – I put in one can, but you can start with half a can if you like or none

1 potato, peeled and diced

Thyme to taste – 4 sprigs fresh (2” sprigs) or 1-2 teaspoons dry – start with 1 teaspoon

Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

If using dry beans, soak and drain according to package directions.

If using canned, just drain but don’t rinse.

Pour a bit of oil in big soup pot, and heat over medium. Cook celery, carrots, onions, garlic and bay and cook until vegetables are tender.

Stir in broth, tomatoes, ham bone and ham, then add beans, potatoes and thyme.

Cover and simmer until beans are tender, a couple hours or so. If using canned, figure on 45 minutes or so. 

Remove bone and if there’s still pieces of ham clinging, add that to the soup. 

If you’re using fresh thyme, remove stems. Remove bay leaves if using.

Add salt and pepper. 

If you’d like it to be a bit thicker, mash it up a bit with a potato masher or hand blender.

Freezes well.

Tip:

Another bean soup recipe:  

The famous Senate bean soup recipe is yours if you want it

Joy of Cooking’s version of U.S. Senate bean soup 

One story goes that the bean soup tradition began around 1900 at the request of Senator Fred Dubois of Idaho. Regardless, it’s a soup that’s stood the test of time!

Here’s Joy’s version as written:

Soak 1 1⁄4 cups small dried white beans, such as navy or Great Northern, rinsed and picked over

Drain and place in a soup pot, along with:

1 small ham hock

7 cups cold water

Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the beans are tender, about 1 1⁄4 hours. Remove the ham hock (leave the soup at a gentle simmer). Discard the bone, skin, and fat; dice the meat. Return it to the pot and add:

1 large onion, diced

3 medium celery ribs with leaves, chopped

1 large potato, peeled and finely diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 1⁄2 teaspoons salt

1⁄2 teaspoon black pepper

Simmer until the potato pieces are quite soft, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and mash with a potato masher until the soup is a bit creamy. Stir in 2 tablespoons chopped parsley