Summer Has Become a Rough Time of Year for Me

July marks the three year anniversary of my Mother’s death. I’ve been missing her a lot these days. I have so many things I want to discuss with her. So many changes so many new things I want to bounce off of her. She was a comfortable woman to talk to, and I mean really easy. When I was a little girl, I remember standing in the checkout line at the grocery store (I think it was Lakeland Florida, so I would have been seven or eight at the time) while the cashier told my Mother her every heartache. My Mom just stood and listened, and when we left, I could tell the woman felt comforted and lighter. As we walked back to the car, I asked my Mom “Do you know that lady?” My Mom said, “No, people just tell me things.” It was true. Something about my Mom gave people space to tell their pain, heartaches and secret shames. It’s probably no surprise she was big on her comfort foods, too; she was a Texas girl born and bred after all! One of her go-to favorites was Navy Bean Soup.

My Mama and Food

My Mom was a great cook, but she did not enjoy it and pretty much stopped doing it when I was a teenager. She wanted homecooked meals but left to her own devices she would eat fried chicken and Wendy’s salad’s every day. When I could, I would make a week’s worth of food for her and leave it in her fridge. She loved simple foods. It made her crazy when I tried to fancy things up. She loved pimento cheese, summer squash and onions, navy bean soup, baked beans, fried chicken, saltine crackers with butter, cucumber and tomatoes, and field peas and rice. If I tried to add herbs to her squash and onions, she would fuss and fuss at me, and there was no sneaking a little extra something in the marinade for the grilled chicken. She also knew there was nothing better than ripe summer tomatoes fresh from the field. She might have loved simple food, but it was always high in flavor.

When the weather turned cold, she loved to have a big pot of chili or a bowl of navy bean soup. The one she made started with canned beans, and you can do that too if you want. I start with dry beans because I think the flavor is better AND its just so much cheaper to buy a bag of beans than it is a can of beans. My Mom’s navy bean soup did not include the parsley I add to mine, but otherwise, this is pretty much my Mama’s soup. I know its the high heat of summer right now, but for some reason, I had to make this soup recently… maybe because no matter how delicious cucumber and tomatoes are, they lack the comforting feeling that a bowl of soup gives ya? Who knows. All I know is I wanted this soup more than anything.

Navy Bean Soup

This navy bean soup is high in flavor but has just a few simple ingredients. Comforting, hearty and healthy this soup is like a big hug from your mama!

Ingredients

1 lb Dried Navy Beans
Kosher Salt
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Whole Peppercorns
1 Bay Leaf
1 Smoked Turkey Wing
2 tbsp Olive Oil
3 Carrots, diced
1/2 Yellow Onion, diced
1 rib Celery, diced
3 tbsp Flat Leaf Italian Parsley, chopped fine

Instructions

Soak Beans 24 Hours Ahead

Add a handful of kosher salt to a large pot filled half-way with room temperature tap water. Add your beans and soak 18-24 hours. The beans will double in size. You can leave them out on the counter until you are ready to cook them.

Soup

Pour the beans out into a colander. Rinse out your pot and return the beans to the pot with fresh water. How much water you add here is not that important, make sure the beans cover the beans. The water should be about 1-2 inches over the top of the beans.
Put your peppercorns in a piece of cheesecloth and tie it up securely. Then add to the pot, along with the bay leaf, the turkey, baking soda and one tablespoon of kosher salt. Bring the beans to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and simmer uncovered for about an hour. Taste your beans and the bean broth after 15 minutes and add more salt if needed. Taste throughout the cooking process and continue to add salt until it tastes good to you.
While the beans are simmering, add the olive oil into a large skillet. Set the flame to medium. When the oil is shimmering, add the diced onion, celery, and carrots cook until carrots are soft and onions and celery are translucent.
After an hour take a bite of your beans. They should be cooked through and tender. If they are not tender, simmer for another 15 minutes and test again. Once your beans are tender, remove the turkey wing and set it aside to cool. Remove the bay leaf and the packet of peppercorns.
Remove 1/2 -1 cup of the beans and puree in a blender or with an immersion blender, add the puree back to the beans.
Pick all the meat off the turkey wing and add dice. Add the diced turkey back to the beans. Also add the onions, celery, carrots, and parsley. Stir and taste. Adjust seasoning if needed.
Serve with crusty bread, around a table full of people you love.

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Missing My Mama, So I Made Soup