senate navy bean soup

This is my mom’s riff on the famous navy bean soup served in the cafeteria of the U.S. Senate. While mom used ham in hers, I’ve replaced it with a ham hock with smashing success. You do you.

Ingredients:
6 cups water
1 1/2 cups dried navy beans, rinsed and sorted
2/3 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup ham (leftover spiral, not country), diced (note: I replaced with one good sized ham hock)
1/2 cup celery, sliced
2 tbsp butter
2 cloves minced garlic
2 tbsp dried parsley
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
1/4 poultry seasoning
1/4 cup evaporated milk

Instructions:
Cover beans with water, bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat. In a separate pan, saute onion, ham, garlic, and celery in butter. Combine and cook until beans are tender, about 2 hours.
Add evaporated milk and heat through.