A Soup To Warm Thy Soul (Navy Bean Soup)
That's just pure goodness up there.
Nothing soothes the soul on a cold wintry day like a warm bowl of delicious soup. The thicker the broth, the better, when it comes to this comfort food staple. When I need to escape from the demands of the day while giving my body a nutritious boost to face the rest of the week, a sumptuous Navy Bean Soup is my comfort of choice.
I don’t share my most treasured comfort recipes with just anyone, so consider yourself a ‘chosen one’ today. I’m feeling generous and carefree. I have a pot of this on the stove right now, but, I’m sorry, you will have to make your own. That whole pot will soon become my personal bowl. See? I went from generous to greedy in just two paragraphs. This soup will do that to you! Beware.
Now. Let me give you this recipe before I completely change my mind about the whole thing.
:-)
Akil’s Navy Bean Soup:
Step One
- Dry Navy Beans, sorted, rinsed, soaked and cooked in slow-cooker.
Step Two
- When a white foam head is produced atop of your boiling beans, carefully spoon it off and discard. Spooning off this gassy foam makes for easier digestion later and lessens the chance of you getting gas from the beans. You don’t want that and neither does your family.
Step Three
- Let beans cook thoroughly until many are breaking apart –– this (the broken beans) will be your natural soup thickener.
Step Four
- In a separate pan, sauté tons of onions, celery, bell pepper (and carrot slices / optional).
Step Five
- In a pot, add olive oil, add a generous amount of dried basil flakes, and lightly cook until it turns a beautiful toasted black. This only takes a couple mins at most.
Step Six
- Before basil burns, pour a large can of whole peeled stewed tomatoes into pot. This will cool the oil down and stop the basil from frying and burning.
Step Seven
- With a potato masher, crush the whole tomatoes into bits, distributing the juices.
Step Eight
- Now add your sautéd vegetables. Stir.
Step Nine
- Now add a few tbsps of Organic ketchup. Stir.
Step Ten
- Now add a few teaspoons of Louisiana styled hot sauce. Stir.
Step Eleven
- Now add the slow cooked beans and stir. Mixture should thicken.
Step Twelve
- Now add garlic powder, sea salt, a dash of cumin, a few dashes of curry. Stir.
Step Thirteen
- Sauté a generous amount of freshly crushed garlic in a small pan of hot olive oil. Do not burn. Do not brown. Once garlic is smelling beautiful, pour oil and garlic into soup, reduce fire on soup, stir. Let all the flavors marinate. Keep seasoning to taste
Step Fourteen
- Stir properly so the bottom of your soup never sticks. Keep on low simmer.
Step Fifteen
- Over the next 30 mins, season to taste, add water to preference, if too thick. Repeat steps fourteen and fifteen until the soup reaches perfection.
Step Sixteen
Time to eat.
Now, there’s one remaining step that’s critically important. Go to your bedroom and find the pants with the elastic waistband. Put those on. You’re going to need them once you get to your third bowl, so, it’s best you plan ahead.
Serve soup with tortilla chips or a whole wheat artisan bread.
While eating, use one hand for your spoon and the other for the hot sauce bottle. I recommend Louisiana Hot Sauce.
Trust me. This is a perfect, healthy, comfort food packed full of protein, iron and other essential nutrients. It’s just a big giant hug in a bowl. Enjoy!
P.S.
An update from my house :-/
A D V E R T I S E M E N T
