Reviewed: Mar. 19, 2005

A good, hearty soup. The flavour was fantastic, even though i didn't have the sausage to put in. I used cooked ham left over from Christmas dinner instead of the ham bone, and that worked fine. Next time, for convience's sake, I may use canned beans, but the dried ones worked well too. I gave this to my brother ( a college student) to fatten him up, and he loved it.

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STEPH577

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Mississauga, Ontario, Canada

Living In: Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada

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Reviewed: Mar. 10, 2005

I left out the sausage and the worchestershire sauce. Doubled the recipe and used 3 lbs. of boneless smoked ham hocks. Served about 30 people and the majority declared it the best bean soup they ever ate. My husband says it's a keeper and he always said my bean soup was the best!

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DIGBYSMOM

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Reviewed: Feb. 22, 2005

Great spice combination, very flexible. I wanted to use up some left-over ham, and didn't have time to run to the store to get more ingrediants to really follow the recipe, so I really butchered it. Essentially, I used a reasonable amount of the dried versions of the spices with three cans of beans (pinto, black-eyed peas, and kidney) instead of dried navy & lima beans, used sparkling apple cider instead of beer, used extra ham instead of Italian sausage, and left out the Worchestshire sauce, chives, and celery because I didn't have any on hand. I also threw in a green pepper for some color. The spices came out perfect even without measuring, and the cayenne added a great kick - my spice-loving fiance was thrilled! Next time I'll try hard apple cider, and more of it (don't usually have beer on hand). Sticking with the canned beans, too - much faster, the whole meal cooked in about an hour including prep.

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Ethel

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Coupeville, Washington, USA

Living In: Seattle, Washington, USA

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Reviewed: Feb. 2, 2005

I was really excited to make this recipe, but after 8 hours (!) of cooking, at least 1/3 of the beans were undercooked. Not sure what I did wrong, though, the instructions were unclear about whether the pot should have a lid. I opted to let it cook uncovered, and I found myself adding water regularly. Maybe the beans just didn't have enough water. Also, the recipe was pretty spicy, even with mild/sweet Italian sausage. Very salty, too. (It's if the recipe almost has TOO much flavor.) Fell somewhat flat at our family dinner table. Won't do again.

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MONTYHOUSE

Cooking Level: Intermediate

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Reviewed: Jan. 1, 2005

This is a fabulous,full bodied, flavorful soup. We served it New Years day to our friends and it was well recieved. We didn't change a thing. We worried about the tomato paste, but it added rich color and flavor.My compliments to Marilyn G. for putting this on line. lal667

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LAL667

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA

Living In: Phoenix, Arizona, USA

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Reviewed: Nov. 5, 2004

Everyone in my family enjoyed this soup. I would suggest making a lot and freezing it to eat later because the prep time takes a while. Worth every minute though.

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KMBRUNS

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Reviewed: Aug. 12, 2004

FABULOUS I DOUBLED IT AND IT WAS STILL GONE IN TWO DAYS I WANT TO MAKE A HAM JUST TO GET THE SOUP!

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MOLLYDEGROH

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Reviewed: Feb. 15, 2004

I hate to be the lone dissenter, but I thought this was only okay, and some of the ingredients (which might make the recipe look intimidating to some) were completely unneccesary and actually detracted from the soup's flavor, specifically the sausage and the fresh herbs. In the interest of economy, I recommend using whatever herbs you have on hand that are in the recipe (only less if dried). If I made this again, I would omit the sausage, too, and add either ham flavoring or extra ham because my family likes the flavor.

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CYCLECAT

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Kodiak, Alaska, USA

Living In: Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA

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Reviewed: Jan. 6, 2004

This is a terrific hearty soup - especially with a leftover ham bone from a previous evenings dinner. I forgot to add the worcestershire and it still came out great! My 4 yr. old daughter loves it too! The cayenne really gives it bite, so if you are not one to crave spice, cut back to 1/2 tsp or less; the soup still has great flavor.

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LUCKERAMA

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Reviewed: Mar. 10, 2003

This soup is wonderful..it's on the top of the list of favorites for my whole family. I only left out the worceshire sauce, and it was still wonderful. I love all the fresh spices in the soup so tasty. I would highly recommend this one!

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LAURZ

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Reviewed: Feb. 19, 2003

You CANNOT mess up this recipe! First soup from scratch I ever made, and I was snowed in, so I didn't have several of the ingredients. I substituted cooked fresh tomato and extra paste for the canned tomatoes, lentils for the lima beans, extra white onion for the green onions and chives, and all dried spices instead of fresh. Still phenomenal!

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FLORAMICH

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Reviewed: Jan. 13, 2003

Every year my husband begs for bean soup. I have not found a recipe that I like. The search is over! This was THE BEST! Well worth the trip to the store for fresh herbs. It made enough to share at work and the comment was "Tastes like restaraunt". Thanks, I will be making this again and again!

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MKIMMEL

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Reviewed: Jul. 16, 2001

The BEST I ever tasted-Can wait to make for company Wonderful winter soup---THANKS

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carol

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Reviewed: Apr. 18, 2001

EXCELLENT! I cooked pasta which only some of us added, also had with buttered bread. Flavor explosion! We ALL loved this soup and believe me 2 out of 5 of us are very picky!!

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