Dear Readers,
While on a recent shopping trip to Costco, I discovered and purchased a 5.5 pound container of “Gourmet Bean Blend” distributed by Epicurean Specialty, which is “a colorful variety of beans, peans and lentils”. There’s a recipe for a Vegetarian Gourmet Bean Blend Chili printed on the package, but I was in the mood for bean soup and here is what I concocted.
Mimi’s Costco Bean Soup
3 cups Epicurean Specialty Gourmet Bean Blend
2 – 32 oz. containers Kirkland Signature chicken stock
2 or 3 cups cubed ham
1 – 6 oz. can tomato paste
1 cup chopped celery
Soak 3 cups of beans overnight in cold water as directed on the package. Next day, drain and rinse beans and put in a large soup pot. Add remaining ingredients along with salt and pepper to taste. Bring mixture to a boil and then lower heat to a simmer. Cover soup pot and continued to cook for two hours or until beans are tender.
This soup just begs to be served with warm, buttered cornbread. Any mix will do but Trader Joe’s has a really good cornbread mix that easy to prepare.
My husband loved the soup and so did I.
Enjoy and
Keep smilin’!