Quick Bean Soup

I have not been lost, just tired and worn out. But, I have been cooking--just not blogging. And, it's been super cold, and snowy, so I've been leaving for work even earlier, and getting home later. 

But, home-cooking is never far from my mind. I wanted to make bean soup, the way my mom does, but I couldn't find the beans I wanted, so I was going to just substitute dry beans. However, as my week and weekend started to get away from me, and I knew I had to use some leftover ham, I decided to forgo the beans and use canned. But, I didn't have any canned navy bean. So, I decided to use pinto, because I always have those. Lo and behold, I only had one can. So, I used cannellini beans (white kidney beans) in addition to the pinto. Overall, this came out tasting almost the same as my mom's.

Ingredients
1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 can cannellini, drained and rinsed
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
about 1/3 cup carrots, sliced
1 stalk of celery, sliced
2 medium red potatoes, cubed
1/2-1 cup white onions
About 8-10 oz cubed ham
pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients into a large pot and simmer for about 1-2 hours, or until veggies are tender. Serve hot with saltine crackers for the best flavor! :)

Verdict: Fantastic! I'm sure nothing will ever beat my mom's soup, but let's face it, I don't have the same amount of time she does to complete her meals. Thus, finding some short cuts help me out a lot!