Here's comfort for a cold winters night. Tasty. Nutritious. And just plain good, with rich flavor, warmth, and goodness for your body. It's easy to make. You'll wish to have enough of this soup to provide at least two meals. You can use regular ham, but I like to make it with country ham. If you can't find a slice of country ham at your grocer (and you probably won't), go on out to the Cracker Barrel country store on I-Whatever. I expect you'll find a slice there. Either way, country ham or city ham, this soup's good.
As for the beans, Emeril Lagasse convinced me that canned beans are good. But if you want to mess around picking through and soaking dried beans, go right ahead.
Ingredients:
- *2 Cans of white beans (Great Northern or Cannellini will do the trick)
- 1/2 pound country ham cut into 1/4" x 1" pieces (Put your ruler away. You want small pieces)
- 1 Yellow onion, diced into small pieces
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic (Don't you leave this goodness out!)
- 6 sprigs of fresh thyme
- 4 cups of chicken broth
- 8 oz fresh Collard Greens (Yeah, you can use spinach, arugula, or even mustard greens)
- Salt and pepper to taste (If you use country ham, you may only need add black pepper)
* If it makes you feel better, soak 1/2 pound of dried Great Northern beans over night and use them in place of canned beans. 1/2 pound of dry beans equals 2 cans of cooked beans and vice versa:-)
Heat the olive oil in a heavy soup pot over medium high heat. I like to use my cast-iron Dutch oven to make soup. Add the onion, garlic, and thyme. Stir good to combine and saute the ingredients for 6-8 minutes. The onions ought to be translucent (and not burned brown). Add the beans, ham, and chicken stock and simmer until the beans are tender, but not mushy. Now add your greens and continue to simmer the soup until the greens are wilted.
Serve your soup with fresh cornbread. Grandma made a pan of fresh pan o'cornbread for our supper. It goes so well with this soup!
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