Navy Bean Soup Recipe

I recently had lunch with my Dad and he mentioned he had navy bean soup in a restaurant. He said it tasted just like the soup his mother used to make. He couldn't remember the name of the restaurant. I would like to cook a pot of this soup for him, but I need a good recipe. Does it have pieces of ham or bacon in it?
Thank You

Folks who work in and visit the Capitol dining establishments in Washington swear by the Navy bean soup that they serve every day in every dining establishment in the Capitol complex. Years ago, the man who represented the district that I lived in, used to publish a cookbook containing recipes of his fellow politicians (Ronald Reagan's beef stew recipe was awesome). It included the Senate Dining Room's Navy Bean Soup'

http://www.soupsong.com/rsenate.html

Bert Wolf's book Eating Well has the recipe for Senate Bean Soup which is delicious.

If you can't find it on the web, I'll post it for you.

Mike

Thank You YourPalWill. And thanks for the link to the recipe. I will definitely try this out and report back.

sadams1118 wrote:I recently had lunch with my Dad and he mentioned he had navy bean soup in a restaurant. He said it tasted just like the soup his mother used to make. He couldn't remember the name of the restaurant. I would like to cook a pot of this soup for him, but I need a good recipe. Does it have pieces of ham or bacon in it?
Thank You

In my opinion, there are only two essential ingredients - navy beans, soaked over night in plenty of water, and some good country of ham, gently sauteed until all visible fat is rendered out.

All the other ingredients - celery, onions, pepper, carrots, etc. - are really not all that necessary.

Here's another good website with recipe

http://whatscookingamerica.net/Soup/SenateBeanSoup.htm