Navy Bean Soup

I haven't been feeling much like cooking lately - I don't even think I could tell you what we've eaten the past month.  Finally, I've tried something new and I really liked how it turned out.  It was thick and savory and brimming with delicious veggies.  The original recipe called for a 2 lbs ham hock, I substituted smoked turkey leg, the results were quite nice.

Navy Bean Soup with Smoked Turkey

1 lb Navy beans, rinsed and soaked 

4 TB olive oil

4 C chopped onion (about 1 large onion)

1 C chopped carrots

1/2 chopped celery

3 minced garlic cloves

6 C chicken broth

3 C water

2 bay leaves

6 sprigs parsley chopped

2 lbs smoked turkey legs

2 C chopped, peeled potatoes

2 1/2 tsp thyme

1.  Saute carrots, onion, celery & garlic in oil until soft - about 10 minutes.  Add beans, broth, water, bay leaves, parsley, turkey, potatoes and thyme.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and skim off foam.  Simmer partially covered for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

2.  Remove turkey and bay leaves.  Cut turkey off bone.

3.  Set aside about 3 C of soup and beans.  In a food processor, puree until smooth.  Return mixture to soup along with turkey pieces.  Season with salt and pepper.

May be refrigerated two days or frozen.

Serves 6 to 8.