Recipe - Patties Moms Black Bean Soup

8 cup Water
2 cup Black beans picked over
3 Stalks celery chopped **
3 Onions chopped
2 Bay leaves
1 tablespoon Parsley
One half teaspoon Salt
1/8 teaspoon Pepper
2/3 cup Dry sherry
Butter
Smoked ham bone with meat on
it, or smoked ham hock

SOAK BEANS OVERNIGHT. DRAIN

simmer beans in 8 cups of water until soft on medium flame. meanwhile while
the beans are cooking, saute the chopped onion and celery in butter until
golden. add them to the soup pot along with 2 bay leaves, parsley, salt,
pepper and ham bone. cook over medium heat for 3 hours, adding water if
needed. after the beans are cooked and soft, remove the ham. cut off the
meat and set aside. Cool off soup and put in in a blender and puree in
batches. return the soup to the pot, and add 2/3 dry sherry and the ham
meat. cook over low heat until warmed through and adjust seasonings.

NOTE: i leave off the celery because i don't like it. i also add a bit less
than 2/3 cup sherry. adjust it to your taste. some people add the a little
sherry at the table instead of putting it in the soup pot. i prefer letting
it cook in, so the alchohol content is cooked off. it can also be topped
with sour cream. Posted to KitMailbox Digest by "bevmed"
bevmed@ingress.com on Jul 20, 1997