blake wrote on Fri, 20 Feb 2009 19:28:44 GMT:

>> blake murphy > wrote in message
>> ...
>> [snip]
>>> i'm not notbob, but...
>>>
>>> i would shy away from the tomatoes, chili powder, and
>>> carrots, but only because that, to me, is not bean soup.
>>> i'm sure it's good soup; i would just call it something
>>> different. in bean soup, beans and ham should be the stars.
>>
>> Agreed. I added the carrots because I like carrots. The
>> tomatoes and chili powder were added for bite and heat; it's
>> not a sweet soup like navy bean or some of the garbonzo bean
>> soups.
>>
>>> but that's a theological discussion, much like 'what makes a
>>> proper chili.'
>>
>> You're in church; such discussions are always welcome!
>>
>>> but maybe i'm all wet, since it's a 15-bean soup recipe and
>>> my thinking is geared towards navy pea beans.
>>
>> It's been my experience that a sweetener is used in navy bean
>> soup, or pea soups, so the single bean stands out beyond
>> texture. The ham is often an after-thought, like in pea soup.
>>
>> The Ranger

> not with me. as i think i said before, my bean soup is more
> like ham stew with beans. no sweetener, unless you count
> ketchup at serving time.


Can you really tell the differences among 15-, 14-, 13-bean soups etc.?
Or does the number just mean, throw in what's around?

--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not