SLOW COOKER HAM & NORTHERN BEAN SOUP

Slow Cooker Ham & Northern Bean Soup image

Provided by Cats Pajamas

Categories Ham

Time 6h20m

Yield 8 cups, 6-8 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 9

1 lb dried great northern beans, separated, soaked, and rinsed
3/4 cup carrot, chopped
1/2 cup onion, chopped
6 cups chicken broth (or substitute 2 cups of pan drippings if you have them, so 2 cups ham drippings and 4 cups chicken b)
2 cups cooked ham, diced or shredded, your preference
1/2 teaspoon ground thyme (or more to taste)
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 bay leaf
salt

Steps:

Place the soaked and rinsed beans in a 5- or 6-quart crock pot. Look them over one more time for any bad beans or foreign matter.
Add chopped carrots and onion.
Pour chicken broth (pan drippings/chicken broth combination if you're using it) over beans, carrots, and onion. Mix gently.
Add ham and stir again.
Throw in ground thyme and ground black pepper. (Measurements in ingredients section are a guesstimate, I hardly ever use measuring spoons when cooking, I just make a cup in my hand and eyeball it.) To my tastebuds, a little thyme goes a long way so you may wish to add more than 1/2 teaspoon. Stir again.
Add bay leaf and push it gently under the surface of the broth so it doesn't float.
Cook on high for 1 hour, then low for 6 hours, stirring once in a while if you can. You could probably just cook on low for 6-8 hours if there's nobody home to change the setting. I just like to get things heated up and moving so I do high for an hour on just about everything I put in a Crock Pot.
Remove the bay leaf.
Add salt just before serving to the whole pot or individual bowls.
This may taste good with a drop of Dijon mustard in individual bowls or even a tablespoon or two of cream.
If it's too thin, just take the lid off for a while.