It’s been a crazy last week of school before vacation so I was glad to have this soup on hand for a quick meal. I have been looking for a slow cooker white bean soup recipe and finally found this one on Budget Bytes. I made some changes, like adding ham and broth, but it’s a keeper for sure.
Here’s all it takes.
First, rinse the dry navy beans in a colander and set aside.
Chop the carrots, celery, and onions. Add this to the slow cooker along with the garlic, spices, and oil.
Incorporate the beans, water and broth cover and turn on low.
About halfway through add 2 cups chopped lean ham (this is optional — or you can add at the beginning too). Add more water if you need to.
When it’s done add the salt. While some people say adding salt too early results in beans that don’t cook fast enough, I do it at the end because you get more flavor with less.
Enjoy! Happy Holidays!
- 1 bag dried navy beans (1 lb)
- Half pound carrots (about 4 large) sliced
- 4 celery stalks, sliced
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp. dried rosemary
- ½ tsp. dried thyme
- ½ tsp. smoked paprika
- Fresh cracked pepper (10-15 cranks)
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 7 cups liquid (half water, half chicken or vegetable broth)
- 2 cups cooked ham, chopped
- 1 tsp. salt (adjust as you taste)
- Rinse beans and set aside.
- Chop veggies and add to a 6-quart slow cooker.
- Add spices (except salt), oil and liquid to veggies and cover and cook on low for about 8 hours or until beans are soft but not mushy.
- Halfway through cooking, add the chopped ham. When the soup is done add the salt and serve.
For more easy recipes and tips on how to serve meals to kids, check out Maryann’s book The Family Dinner Solution: How to Create a Rotation of Dinner Meals Your Family Will Love
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