Bean and Sausage Soup Recipe

TThis works very well with hot or sweet Italian Sausage, but also works well with almost any other good sausage you happen to have.

Ingredients:

• 1 Lb Dry Navy Beans, rehydrated according to package directions
• 1 1/4 Lb Sweet Italian Sausage Links, cut lengthwise, then into chunks.
• 1 Large or 2 Medium Red Onions, minced.
• 1 Quart Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth (optional)
• 2 Stalks Celery, chopped 1/4″
• 4 - 5 Large Cloves Garlic, finely chopped
• 1 C Chopped Parsley
• Fresh Ground Pepper to taste
• 2 Bay Leaves

Directions

• Rinse beans and discard anything that isn't a Navy
  Bean.
• Add a little olive oil to a sauce pot and heat on medium until
  hot.
• Add sausage and cook until no longer raw-looking
• Add onion and celery, and saute until very lightly browned.
• Add chopped garlic and saute until softened (not browned)
• Add beans and mix well
• Add chicken broth and bay leaf and mix well
• Add enough water to cover the top of the ingredients
  by at least 2 inches, and heat on medium-high until just barely boiling, then reduce heat to a bare simmer.
• Reduce heat to very low and cook for 10-12 hours until beans are very soft
• Add water as necessary and stir and stir occasionally
  to prevent it from becoming too thick
• Add parsley about a half-hour before serving
• Enjoy! (don't forget to remove the bay leaves!)