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Wonderbag Recipe: 15 Bean Soup
Starter Bean Package
Made With Turkey Ham or Turkey Lil' Smokies
It's Fall here with a crisp in the morning air. Time to start thinking about winter favorites, food-wise that is. Bean soup is healthy and hearty. This bean soup also has a variety of beans included in the mix. I use Hurst's HamBeens brand 15 bean soup mix. Check out their website for more recipes using beans. Since I don't eat pork, I discard the ham flavor packets and use the recipe below.
When I read the back of the bean soup package I was pleasantly surprised to find all of these different types of beans included in the mix: northern beans, pinto beans, large lima beans, yelloweye bean, garbanzo beans, baby lima beans, green split pea, kidney beans, cranberry bean, small white beans, pink beans, small red beans, yellow split pea, lentils, navy beans, white kidney beans, black beans. Visit the Bean Institute for information on "The Nutritional Value of Dry Beans".
If you're not familiar with the WonderBag, visit my article on this marvelous kitchen tool. As I become more acquainted with the use of the bag, I find myself wanting to find more ways to use it. You'll find my tips included in the various hubs which feature the WonderBag. I was pleased to find the WonderBag blog for more recipes I can make using it.
The soup mix comes with a ham flavor packet. Since I don't eat pork, I used a vegetable broth and Turkey Lil' Smokies from Hillshire Farms. This dish is rather starchy, yes, but I offset that by including a salad with this meal as well as replacing one or both of the other meals in a day with a salad or salad and fruit. Just to add insult to injury, one can serve this soup over rice or cornbread or with fresh bread. Since I'm not pursuing a starch-free lifestyle, I'm not insulted at all. Keep in mind that this recipe is open to variation. You can also make it without the WonderBag, just adjust your stove top cook time accordingly. Include vegetables to your liking and the bean combination you prefer. The package of beans is 20 ounces, so any combination of bean types will work for this recipe so long as they come in at 20 ounces total. I talk more about bean soup on Jaquo.
Himalayan Sea Salt
Himalayan salt is also known as halite. It is mined in Pakistan and commonly used in place of common white sea salt or table salt. Where the Khewra salt mines in Pakistan are the second largest in the world, the Sifto Salt Mine in Goderich, Ontario, Canada is the largest in the world, but it doesn't produce the lovely pink colored salt from Pakistan.
You'll be surprised to find that because Himalayan salt is naturally formed, it is a source of dietary iodine. The mines from which this precious pink salt acquired were once sea beds, thus the salt is a sea salt. Sea salts have naturally occurring iodine whereas table salt is iodized, thus chemically enhanced to include iodine. Visit this article on Fitlife TV's website for more information on the benefits of pink Himalayan salt.
Some effects of iodine deficiency are goiter and cretinism. Some study results also suggest there's a link between iodine deficiency and breast cancer. Hypothyroidism is known to be a result of iodine deficiency. In discussing both sea salt and it's benefits, it's necessary to ensure household salt includes iodine (unless a physician suggest a diet excluding iodine). I have a brand of sea salt on the shelf which states plainly that there is no iodine in its composition. I don't use it often, preferring salt with naturally occurring iodine.
I discuss pink salt further on Jaquo.
Start With A Good Soup Pot
15 Bean Soup
What You Need
- 1 pkg Hurst's HamBeens 15 Bean Soup (20 oz.), Discard the flavor package.
- 1 medim - large Onion, Chopped
- 1 - 14 oz pkg Hillshire Farms Turkey Lil' Smokies, Used in lieu of turkey ham
- 1 large clove Garlic
- 6 small carrots Carrot, Sliced or chopped (size as desired)
- 1 medium Sweet Potato, Sliced or chopped (size as desired)
- 2 medium Summer Squash, Sliced or chopped (size as desired)
- 1 small Butternut Squash, Sliced or chopped (size as desired)
- 1 - 14.5 can Swanson's Vegetable Broth, Used in lieu of chicken or beef bouilion
- Salt, To taste (I use Himalayan pink salt)
- Pepper, To taste
Putting It All Together
- Sautée the onions until soft along with the garlic.
- Add the smokies or turkey ham and continue to simmer.
- Add the can of broth or bouillon.
- Add the remaining ingredients.
- Add enough water to cover all ingredients with an inch of water above the surface of the contents of the pot.
- Boil for 35 minutes.
- Place the pot in the WonderBag.
- Bag for six hours.
Cook Time Can Vary
The Calabacitas Squash
I discovered calabacitas squash quite by accident. It is a squash known by many names to include gray, tatume, calabacitas or little pumpkin. You may be familiar with it's cousin, zucchini squash or it's other cousine yellow squash. They are both summer squashes whereas pumpkins and speghetti squash are winter squashes. Calibacitas doesn't fit neatly into the category of summer or winter squash, because it is both. These classifications indicate when the squashes are harvested. Calabacitas can be harvested as either a summer or winter squash.
One thing about the summer squashes I love is that I can use them almost interchangeably. If, for instance, I don't have enough zukes for zucchini bread, then I grate up a yellow or grey squash to make up the difference. I always love a bit of banana in my zucchini as well. The variation in color found in summer squash is wonderful in dishes for visual appeal.
Grow Your Own Beans ~ Start With Dried Beans
© 2014 Tanya Jones