Mom and Dad's Bean Soup is a Delight

My Bean Soup, last evening

Long, long ago, when I was quite young, my Dad brought home a recipe for Bean Soup. They didn't often really cook together. Dad worked long hours and didn't always have time. He was inventive through, and loved to try new things, so I think that must be where I got my gene for trying new things! They made the bean soup though, and it didn't quite suit. So they tinkered with it, tweaked it, and over time, this is what they came up with; a delicious, stick-to-your-ribs kind of soup that is just heaven on a cold day. The photo below left is one my Dad took with his Sony Mavica camera. He was so proud to be able to take photos and immediately email them to all of us children. Dad passed on later that year, and Mom some years later, but their recipes live on.

Mom & Dad's Bean Soup, 2001

ham bone and beans in the pot with water - note the line

To make this soup, it is best to have a leftover ham bone from whatever occasion you have eaten a ham. It is also good to leave a bit of ham on the bone so you get some nice meaty bites in the finished soup. Whenever the occasion arises and a ham bone is left, freeze it, well wrapped until needed. If you really do not have a ham bone, it is possible to make this soup with smoked ham hocks. There was a time when ham hocks had a bit more meat to them, but these days, there is almost none. Still, the flavor will be there and that is the most important part. If you use ham hocks, you might consider adding in 1/2 to 1 pound of cubed ham. Other than the ham bone, the soup is really very simple. Nothing out of the ordinary goes in but beans, barley, onion, carrots, potatoes bay leaves and ketchup.

I don't recall Mom ever soaking the beans for the soup, and I never have when I make my own. Great Northern beans are best, though Navy Beans are fine. When Mom and Dad made the soup in later years, they started playing with the recipe a bit, using celery, which they never did when I was young, and sometimes substituting a bag of baby carrots for regular carrots, sliced. The soup will thicken as the beans are cooked for more than 2 hours. If you stop the cooking when the beans are just tender, the soup will not be as thick, though just as tasty. My preference is that the soup be so nice and thick you can almost stand your spoon up in it, but that is my choice.

Another thing my Dad always did, and I follow suit, is to add a little vinegar to the soup in his bowl. It really enhances the flavor of the soup. I know some may thing this is odd, but I love it, so give it a try. Anywhere from a teaspoon to a tablespoon per bowl, to taste. This soup is heavenly good on its own, but a nice slice of bread with butter is a wonderful addition to the meal.

Bean Soup

The finished soup

1 leftover ham bone, with up to 1 pound meat left on
1 pound Great Northern Beans, picked over and rinsed
1 large onion, diced
1 - 2 bay leaves
1 cup barley, preferably the long-cooking kind
3 - 4 large carrots, scrubbed, sliced in coins
2 - 4 potatoes, depending on size, peeled, cubed
3/4 - 1 cup ketchup

Put first five ingredients into a very large soup pot and add water. The ham bone should stick out by about 1/3 (note the line I made on the photo above to show where the water line was). Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for about an hour or so. Add the carrots, potatoes and ketchup, cover and continue to cook for at least another hour or two, until soup is slightly thickened and beans are falling-apart tender. Remove the ham bone from the pot and set it on a plate. When cool enough to handle, break off all the meat and break it up into shreds. Discard the bone and any fat. Return the meat to the pot and stir in. Remove bay leaves and pass the vinegar!



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Quick Tuesday Supper

I love to cook. I cook a lot, and often. Sometimes, I just want something quick and easy, and last evening that was it. I had been emailing back and forth with my sisters about Bean Soup, a recipe my Mom and Dad created a l-o-n-g, long time ago. I started my website and blog one year and 4 months ago, and in all that time I have not made Bean Soup. It is one of my favorite things in winter. The main reason I couldn't just run to the kitchen and put on a pot of soup was because I had no leftover ham bone (with a bit of meat left on). Usually, whenever I have a ham bone left, I freeze it until such time as it is needed. In the last 24 years since being with my current husband, the use of a ham bone has been divided between My Mom and Dad's Bean Soup, and his Mom's Famous Baked Beans. The last couple of times a ham bone was available in this house, it went to make Baked Beans.

Creamed Ham and Peas, on Toast

Thus, my quickie dinner of last evening. I needed a ham bone. Therefore, I needed a ham! I went out and bought one. I mean, after emailing about it for days, I just want that soup. Now I had a ham and I needed to make dinner. A quick and easy dinner with many kinds of leftovers, such as ham, turkey or chicken, and even canned tuna, is to make a cream sauce or bechamel, and add in some meat and vegetables. My husband and I love peas, so peas was my choice last night. Another of my Mom's easy dishes was Creamed Tuna and Peas, basically with this same recipe. I loved that, growing up. My husband will not eat tuna, so I just don't make it just for myself.

When making this meal of Creamed Ham and Peas, no salt is needed in the recipe, as the ham is salty. If making this dish with turkey or chicken, some salt will be needed. I don't believe Mom ever added salt to her Creamed Tuna and Peas, but when using canned tuna and peas, there is plenty of salt there, also.

Creamed Ham and Peas being made

Creamed Ham and Peas

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk +
1 cup water (or use total liquid amount as 1 1/2 cup milk)
2 cups diced ham
1½ cups frozen peas

In a skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add in the flour and stir with a spoon or spatula to completely combine the two. Off the heat, add in the evaporated milk and stir to completely combine the butter and flour roux with the milk. Back on the heat, add in the water and stir constantly, until the mixture thickens and is bubbling. (This is your basic Bechamel Sauce).

Add in the ham and the peas, stirring so nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan, until the mixture is completely heated through. Easy!

This kind of creamed meal can be served over toast (and we all know what that is called), or over pasta or rice. It can be made and placed in a casserole with some grated cheese over top and baked for 20 to 30 minutes until bubbly. It can be combined with pasta, placed in a casserole and topped with buttered bread crumbs and baked as stated. In other words, this kind of dish is just plain versatile. It can be dressed up by adding in some shredded cheddar or jack cheese to melt while in the skillet or it can have some cream cheese melted in. Since it was already late when I got to making the dish, I made it at its most basic. I just wanted to point out that it can be embellished in so very many ways.


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

A Time to Celebrate - Family

Dad making soup

October 1st marks my youngest sister's 50th birthday. She finally made it. I am long past that now and feeling great to have had a wonderful life and still able to learn so much daily. I am truly grateful for my family, and particularly my sisters (all 5 of them). We always have a wonderful time when we get together, with everyone talking, everyone laughing (which puts me in mind of the quip: "I laughed so hard the tears ran down my legs!"), lots of wine and or other drinks, and most of all the foods. We all are excellent cooks. Some of us have stronger skill sets in one area (or maybe just more patience!) than another, but we are all wonderful cooks. This stemmed from Mom, who was a very good cook, and Dad, who loved to experiment when he had time, coming up with some marvelous recipes along the way.

 
Dad loved to experiment, and was not afraid to try new things. I recall when he and Mom collaborated on a recipe for Ham Bone Soup. Dad found a recipe for "Senate Bean Soup" originally, but was not pleased with how the recipe came out, so over the years he and Mom tweaked the recipe until it came out "right." He loved to make Stewed Tomatoes, and played with that recipe right up until the end of his cooking lifetime. When we were young, Dad would sometimes make us French Omelettes, something he learned when in France during the war. Mom made dishes from her Slovakian heritage with a few other staples thrown in, all of which were just marvelous.

I guess what I am trying to say is that all of us sisters learned what good food was since birth, and we all learned to experiment. When we get together for any event there is so much wonderful food; so many wonderful flavors. Standing around eating and savoring the flavors is something my husband described for me:

"Have you ever had a meal where the visual presentation was stunning, the smells were incredible and the taste was so remarkable that you ate slowly, savoring every bite, wishing that the experience would never end?"

That is what happens when we all get together. Well, maybe not the "eating slowly" part! But it is magical. Laura, the upcoming birthday girl, makes the most wonderful truffles. I have never had the patience. Barb is always busy with job and her own family all getting together, but even as busy as she is, she always makes putting together a meal for kids, grandkids, extended family and their friends - seem easy. It is a gift, to be sure. She makes basic food taste sublime. Her "Friendship Bread" was nearly an addiction for me! I could write a short story about all the wonderful talents my sisters have in the kitchen. Please excuse if I don't get into the wonders each have created. 

So this is some background on my family and how we all got the "cooking gene", and I have taken it a step farther by bringing it all online.  I will be gone a week to celebrate Laura's 50th. In running around the house, gathering up things to pack for the trip, my husband came home with some small cukes to make into Bread and Butter Pickles. I had wanted to make them weeks ago and between one thing and another it didn't happen. Then the season for the small pickling cukes was over and I was left without being able to make these. I wanted to put a photo on my website, but had no cukes to can. I did get them made yesterday, finally, and here is a photo of the final product. 

Bread and Butter Pickles

Bread & Butter Pickles

1 quart apple cider vinegar
2 cups water
7 cups sugar
1 - 2 teaspoons turmeric
2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon celery seeds
1 teaspoon allspice berries
1 cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon whole cloves
5 pounds pickling cucumbers
3 pounds onions, sliced and quartered
Canning or Kosher salt, for sprinkling

Slice cucumbers to about ¼-inch thick and layer into a large colander, sprinkling salt all over them, layer upon layer. Set them aside to drain for at least 1 hour. Meanwhile, slice the onions and set aside. In a large nonreactive enamel or stainless pot mix together the vinegar, sugar water, turmeric, mustard and celery seeds.

In a small piece of cheesecloth, place the allspice, cinnamon and cloves and tie together for easy removal later. Place into the pot. Bring the mixture to nearly boiling to dissolve the sugar. Drain the cucumbers well and add them to the pot with the onions and bring just to under a boil. Remove the little bag of whole spices. Pack the pickles and onions into hot, sterilized jars and top with lids and rings. Place the jars into a boiling water bath to cover and process for 10 minutes at 0 - 1,000 feet. Add 5 minutes for 1,000 to 3,000 feet; 5 more minutes for above 3,000 feet. 


For the next week I will be helping out at my sister Anita's house, making things to share with all of us for the birthday week. Anita has things well in hand already, but it will be a busy few days. Off I go!


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Organizing a New Kitchen

Finally back after our move. I've been digging myself out from boxes everywhere for the last 2 weeks, after frantically packing for the weeks prior. Moving is stressful at best. My husband keeps asking where an item is. All I can say with any certainty is, "I just don't know!" Of course, that is not the answer he hoped for so it continues to be stressful. Such is life and moving.

I have no new photos to attach here for this blog. Maybe tomorrow, or maybe next week, but I wanted to at least write a little bit here. I am making an effort to do a little light cooking, in an attempt at "getting to know my new kitchen." It is hard to get things in an order so they are handy and useful, and every kitchen is set up differently. I have plenty of room, but things are laid out differently in each house. Yesterday I made brownies. I had been warned that the stove here runs hot, so I set the temperature 25 degrees lower. The brownies were not done in the usual time called for, so I upped the temp and they were finally done with about 7 extra minutes. They came out delightfully chewy, so that was great, but I am not sure the oven temp really runs much hotter than normal, after that experiment. Here is my recipe:

My Best Brownies

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
2/3 cup unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped nuts

In a medium saucepan, melt together the chocolate and butter (11 tablespoons). Once melted, remove from heat. Add in the sugar and mix to combine. Add the eggs and beat to combine. Add in the flour, baking powder, salt and nuts and stir until just mixed. Pour into a greased 9 x 13 pan and bake at 350 for about 30 minutes. Do not overbake.

I made my Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes with Ham a few days ago, in the midst of complete chaos. They also turned out perfectly and it was so wonderful to have a home cooked meal again, instead of store bought rotisserie chicken, potato salad and coleslaw, or spiral sliced ham with potato salad and coleslaw. Not that I am complaining. My wonderful sister-in-law provided the foods during the move, so I didn't have to panic trying to find things to make in such a chaotic situation. I am completely and utterly grateful for all she provided. It is still nice to get back to some semblance of normalcy. This coming weekend I am hoping to make Mom Rawstern's Famous Baked Beans with the ham bone from that spiral sliced ham we have been eating for the last week.

Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes with Ham

Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes with Ham

Serves 6 to 8
Makes one 9 x 13-inch casserole

2 cups ham, cut in small chunks
3 - 3½ pounds russet potatoes, peeled, sliced ¼" thick
½ medium onion, sliced thinly, then roughly chopped
8 ounces shredded cheddar cheese, reserving ¾ cup aside
6 tablespoons flour
1½ teaspoon salt
¼ - ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups milk, evaporated milk or cream
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 400 degrees (375, if convection). Spray a 9 x 13-inch casserole with cooking spray. Divide the potatoes into three piles, making one pile of the best and most even shaped slices, and one with the smallest bits and pieces. Place the latter pile into the bottom of the casserole. Layer half the ham over the potatoes, then half the onion, and half the cheese. Sprinkle on 3 tablespoons of the flour, then half the salt and pepper. Place pats of one tablespoon of the butter over the surface. Repeat with another layer of potatoes, then the ham, onion, cheese, flour, salt, pepper and the butter. Top with the best looking potato slices.

Heat the milk to just warm, and whisk in the Dijon mustard. Pour this over the casserole, cover the casserole with foil and bake for45 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake for another 45 minutes. Ten minutes before the potatoes are done, sprinkle the reserved cheddar cheese over top of the casserole and allow to finish baking. Allow to rest for 15 minutes before serving. 


Today my husband requested my Uniquely Fine Chicken Salad. He loves it for lunch sandwiches, though it is equally good for noshing, served on crackers, tortillas or buns. It is also wonderful for appetizers. Eventually I will get some photos to put in my blog and website, but for today, at least the recipe is available. It is completely gluten free, if served on something other than wheat breads or crackers. It is delightful on a bed of lettuce or tomatoes, too.

Uniquely Fine Chicken Salad

Uniquely Fine Chicken Salad

Makes 6 to 7 cups

½ cup raisins or craisins
½ cup pecans, walnuts or almonds
3 to 4 stalks celery, in 1-inch chunks
1 carrot, scrubbed, in half-inch slices
1 green pepper, seeded, in 1-inch chunks
1 whole rotisserie chicken, skin and bones removed
¾ cup sweet pickle relish
¾ - 1 cup mayonnaise
¼ cup yellow mustard

In a food processor, place the raisins and nuts and process for about 20 to 30 seconds, until in smaller bits. Remove to a large bowl. Next, process the celery in about 4 to 5 short pulses and remove to the bowl. Repeat with the carrot and then the green pepper. Do not process too fine. Repeat with the chicken in two batches and add to the bowl, along with the pickle relish, mayonnaise and mustard. With a spatula, combine all the ingredients well. 


It is good to be back!


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest. 

My Mother-in-Law's Famous Baked Beans

When I joined my husband's family almost 25 years ago, one of the things I learned early on is that there is no substitute for his Mom's baked beans. I was assured it was somehow impossible to replicate them, and the family had tried. Not one to back down from such a challenge, I wondered about this, but when his parents came to visit one time, I asked Mom R to make them, so I could see how it was done.

Mom Rawstern's Famous Baked Beans

She said we needed a ham bone, with some meat left on it, preferably about a pound. Check. Had one of those in the freezer, since I like to make bean soup with ham. She said we needed ketchup, some brown sugar and molasses. Check, check and check. Doing good so far. We needed white beans, preferably Great Northern. These I did not have in the pantry, alas. We took a trip to the grocery store and rectified that lapse. She sorted through the beans, checking for bits of dirt and such, washed them and left them to soak overnight.


Next morning she got down to business and set the beans in water in a large pot. Adding in the ham bone, she turned on the beans to boil, lowered the heat and covered the pot and allowed the beans to simmer away for a couple of hours on top of the stove. The next thing she did was remove the bone, cutting off the meat and adding that back in, and next went in the other three ingredients. We had a 32 ounce bottle of ketchup, and most of that was used, or something like over 2 cups worth. About a half cup of dark brown sugar went in next, and a couple of tablespoons of molasses. She stirred the mixture, covered the pot and placed into a low oven, about 260 to 280 degrees, or whatever maintains a simmer. Now, she said, 4 or 5 hours of baking and they are ready for supper.  

Mom Rawstern's Famous Baked Beans

Mom Rawstern's Famous Baked Beans

Five ingredients and long slow cooking make these baked beans a hit at any time. If the thought of ketchup puts you off, think about the fact that ketchup has all the flavor ingredients already included; spices, vinegar, sugar. You need a long day at home to babysit these, but the recipes is large and they freeze very well, so it's easy to have them at any time.

Makes one large pot of beans

1 pound great northern beans, picked over and soaked overnight
1 leftover ham bone with at least 1 pound of meat left on
2 cups ketchup
½ cup dark brown sugar
2 Tablespoons molasses

When ready to begin the recipe, place the beans with their soaking water into a 8 quart, oven-safe soup pot. Make sure the water covers the beans by about 2 inches. Set the ham bone into the beans and water; the water will not cover all the ham bone; this is fine. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to maintain a simmer. Cover and cook for 2 hours.

Preheat oven to about 275 degrees, or whatever temperature will maintain a low simmer. Add in the ketchup, brown sugar and molasses and stir. Bring back to a boil and cover the pot. Set pot into the oven and allow to slowly simmer for 4 to 5 hours more. If the beans still look soupy, remember that once they cool they will thicken significantly. If making these for a party, it is best to make them at least a day in advance, giving them time to thicken to proper consistency.

NOTES: With any beans, it is best to soak them overnight in water to cover by about 3 inches. If you forget, put the picked over and washed beans into a large pot with water to cover by 2 to 3 inches and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and allow to stand for 1 hour, then proceed with the recipe.

So what was the difficulty?

Looking at this recipe, it was way too easy. Why would it be so difficult to mimic? All these years later, I was asked to take her one cookbook and make all of her recipes into a cookbook for the family. I love my husband's family a lot, and I put heart and soul into that compilation of recipes, including a lot of family photos. Mom R did not use her one cookbook for the recipes, but just as a place to write in her own, anywhere there was a bit of space. Sometimes, in 3 or 4 different places. And sometimes, all of them were slightly different. Aha! This might be the problem. Mom R changed her recipes over time, it appears, and the recipe was written one way for this person in the family, another for that person. In some recipes she has onion added. In some were onion flakes. Some had more or less of an ingredient. I guess it would be harder to truly know the recipe that way.

Looking at this recipe, I have stuck with the it as she gave it to me, with one difference. I know that any bone in a soup or stew gives immense flavor. I leave the bone in for the entire cooking time. At the point the beans are done, the meat literally dissolves off the bone, and the bone is easily removed, bare. My husband has always been extremely pleased with the outcome of my version of his Mom's best recipe, and that is what counts.



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Warming Soup on Cool Days

When the air turns chilly, we think of soups and stews and other heartier dishes too overwhelming for the summer. I have had a soup on my mind for a while now and finally, today I made it. I thought up the combination a lot of years ago, but it has been a long while since I actually made it. Life gets in the way sometimes, and I tend to forget how good a dish is, and let things just slide. It had been sliding for far too long.

Today I said to myself, "This is the DAY!"  I had a hambone.  I bought a ham recently just so I would have a hambone left.  The soup is a variation of split pea and ham.  I call it:

Split Pea, Vegetable and Ham Soup

Split Pea, Vegetable and Ham Soup

1 leftover ham bone with about 1 pound meat left on - OR -
(2 - 3 meaty smoked ham hocks)
1 large onion, chopped
2 - 3 celery stalks, chopped
2 large, or 3 medium carrots, sliced and roughly chopped
1 medium potato, peeled (or not, as desired) and cut in small dice
6 - 8 cups water
1 (1-pound) bag dried split peas
1 box chopped frozen spinach

Directions: In a large soup pot, place the hambone with meat, onion, carrot, potato and celery. Pour in water to nearly cover the ham bone or hocks; about 6 - 8 cups. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer slowly for about 1½ - 2 hours. The meat should be getting tender. Add the bag of split peas and cook until the peas are mostly disintegrated; about an hour. Remove hambone or hocks and remove as much meat as possible and return meat to the soup. Add in the package of frozen spinach and allow to completely heat through. Stir well to disperse the spinach. Serve hot with some nice crusty bread, or corn muffins. Serves 8 or more as a main meal.

NOTES: This recipe can be made with yellow split peas, also. No salt is needed in this recipe, as the ham bone or hocks are salty enough to season the soup. All the ingredients could easily be placed in a large crock pot and slow-cooked all day. It can also be placed in a large heavy Dutch Oven, or enameled cast iron pot and slowly simmered on the stove or in the oven, on whatever temperature maintains a simmer.

The addition of all the vegetables and the spinach makes this soup visually appealing; moreso than if it was just split peas and ham. I just ate my bowl of soup and it really was all I remembered. Just thick enough, just the right amount of salt, plenty of meat, excellent flavors and lots of vegetables. Try this out on a chilly day; it is such an easy recipe.


My passion is to teach people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and help pass along my love and joy of food, both simple and exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, trying new things weekly. Join me at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook and Pinterest.