This recipe caught my attention for so many reasons.  First, I love bean soup.  My mother always made it and I didn't always appreciate it when I was young.  As I became older, the flavor and texture of the soup grew to be one of my most favorite and comforting foods.

 

 

You'll notice that this recipe is somewhat 'fancy'.  The cook obviously cherished this recipe enough to type in onto a piece of blue paper on which she later crimped the edges.  The recipe is affixed to a form that is printed on a card similar to the size of a recipe card.  The form is titled 'Remanufactured Engine Prospect Card' and contains fields for inputting your personal information.

This recipe and others I will be sharing in the coming weeks is from a set of recipes I purchased.  The seller purchased them directly from the owner in Oklahoma who at the age of 84 was moving into a retirement center.  She sold all of her recipes and cookbooks.

The recipe is similar to my mother's but uses a few spices which my mother never used.  I'm sure it's delicious though and based on the wear-n-tear on the recipe, a family favorite to someone in Oklahoma.

Bean Soup
2 cups dried pinto beans
8 cups water (or a little more)
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1 can (1lb) cooked tomatoes
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon monosodium glutamate
2 tablespoons sugar
salt, pepper, cayenne

Wash beans.  Soak overnight, if you wish.  Put beans, water, and ham (ham hock, scraps from baked ham, and/or bacon ends will do) in a large kettle.  Cover and simmer 2 1/2-3 hours or until beans are almost done.  Add water if needed.  Fry onion, celery, green pepper and crushed garlic in the butter until tender.  Add these vegetables and remaining ingredients to beans.  Cover and simmer 1/2 hour longer.  Add seasonings to taste.  Serves 8.  Serve with Chip-O's.

I was intrigued by that last word 'Chip-O's'.  I researched and found they were a product sold by Morton Foods that at some point had a lawsuit filed against them by Frito-Lay (I guess Chip-O sounded too much like Frito, Cheeto, Dorito, etc.).  I couldn't locate much more information about them other than they were a type of corn chip, popular in Oklahoma.

Note: You'll notice on the original recipe that there is a line drawn through the oregano and cumin, and also reduced the chili powder to 1 tablespoon.  A modification from the cook who must have decided they didn't like as much spice in their bean soup :-)

Update (10/13/08): This Pinto Bean Soup recipe was recently made by Eating Out Loud.