May 21, 2017 – This was a great dish. Used one pound of the very small navy beans cooked all day in a creole vegetable base inspired by the one at their site here.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp mild olive oil
2 cups ham or pickled pork, diced into 1-inch pieces
2 cups Andouille smoked sausage, sliced into half-rounds – Would have added if we had any.
2 bay leaves
1 cup finely diced green bell pepper
2 cups finely diced celery
3 cups finely diced yellow onion
4 tsp minced fresh garlic – Used at least twice this much.
1 tbsp salt – Add to taste at end to cook.
¼ tsp ground black pepper
¼ tsp ground cayenne pepper
½ tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
¼ tsp ground cumin
1 cup diced canned tomato
8 cups water – Water was ham broth made by boiling/simmering a meaty ham bone for 6 hours.
1 lb. Blue Runner navy beans, washed

Instructions:  MARY – I edited this some but you will remember it better than me.

6:00 AM – Put ham bone in filtered water in a DO and brought it to a boil. Covered with a pizza pan and simmered until late morning.

~11:00 – Removed ham from the bones, discarded fat and chopped large pieces into 1″ chunks but they are falling apart. Put ham pieces in large skillet with bacon grease and all the veggies and bay leaf to saute. Put the bones back into the water and added the rinsed beans. Brought it back to a boil then set to simmer until it began to brown.
Step 3 Reduce heat to low. Add the garlic, salt, black pepper, cayenne, thyme, oregano, and cumin. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 2-3 minutes.
Step 4 Add the tomato and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2-3 minutes.
Step 5 Add the water and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.