Crockpot Bean with Bacon Soup

By KSmitherman

Ingredients

• Ham bone
• 6-8 cups of water
• 1 (1 lb.) bag of navy beans (2 cups)
• 2-3 bay leaves, depending on size
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 4-5 pieces of bacon
• Small amount of chopped ham, optional
• 1 small onion
• 3 stalks celery
• 1/2 cup heavy cream, optional

Details

Adapted from moneysavingmom.com

Preparation

Step 1

Bring ham bone to boil in water. Add salt, pepper, celery and bay leaves, reduce and simmer for 1-2 hours. (You can use plain water, but I wanted the soup to have some more flavor.) Strain broth, add to crockpot.
To prepare beans, soak overnight or for a quick soak, bring 6-8 cups water to boil, add beans and boil for 2 minutes, remove from heat, cover and let stand for 1 hour. Drain and rinse, add the crockpot.
Cook bacon for a few minutes, then add chopped onion, saute until golden brown and bacon is done, but not crisp. Remove from pan and chop, add to crockpot. Add ham to crockpot, if desired.
Cook on low in the crockpot for 8-10 hours or on high for 5-6 hours. Add heavy cream, and continue to cook about 15 minutes more. Remove bay leaves.
Serve with corn bread.