Bean with Bacon Soup

Ingredients:
2 lbs dry navy beans (soaked and drained), chicken stock, 1/2 lb bacon, onions, red pepper, salt.

Chop and cook your bacon until the fat is rendered (about 5 minutes). I take the bacon out the pan and replace it with the onions and pepper. I cook the onions until they are translucent but not quite caramelized.

Add all of your ingredients to the crock pot. Fill the pot the rest of the way to the top with water. Cook on highest setting for 3-4 hours.

I remove the lid and keep the crock pot on high to let it condense just a bit for about an hour. My pot needed more salt.

Yummy soup to serve as an appetizer or for lunch on a cold day.

My kids prefer to strain out the beans and serve it over rice.

Either way, this is one of my favorite ways to eat beans.