Moo's Original Black Bean Soup

Moo had several dishes that she worked on, revised and continued to perfect across the years. Black Bean Soup was one of them. This was her original recipe. It's good and hearty as Black Bean Soup should be. In days and weeks ahead, I'll share some of her variations on the Black Bean theme.

1 ¾ cups dry black turtle beans
2 quarts water
2 ozs. pork, diced
2 ozs. veal, diced
½ small yellow onion
1 bay leaf
1 clove garlic, crushed
½ tsp. fresh basil, finely clopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1 quart beef consommé
Salt and pepper to taste
½ cup cooked ham, finely chopped (topping)
Coriander and sour cream for topping

Rinse beans, drain thoroughly and put in a 3-quart stock pot. Add about half the water and soak beans overnight. Next day, in the same pot, bring beans and water to boil. Cover pot, reduce heat to simmer and cook about 1 ¾ hours (until tender).

In a separate saucepan, combine pork, veal, onion, bay leaf, garlic, basil, celery and remaining water. Bring to boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for about an hour (until tender). Check water level from time to time. If it evaporates and meat is above the water level, add more water to keep meat covered.

Strain the fully cooked and tender beans, taking care to reserve the cooking water. Pour beans into food processor along with about 1/3 cup of the cooking water and puree. Turn the pureed beans into a large saucepan, and add beef consommé, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer (uncovered) for about an hour. Strain beans then return to the saucepan.

Once fully tender, drain meat combination, and remove bay leaf. Pour into food processor along with 1/3 cup of the reserved cooking water. Puree and turn into bean mixture.
Bring the combined soup ingredients to a boil. If you feel the consistency is too thick, gradually add some of the reserved cooking water. You can add more salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot, and garnish with a dollop of sour cream, ham and a little coriander.