Yield: 5 servings
| Measure | Ingredient |
|---|---|
| ½ pounds | Dried navy beans |
| 4 tablespoons | Olive oil |
| 1 \N | Onion, chopped |
| 2 \N | Garlic cloves, chopped |
| 3 \N | Ribs celery, diced |
| 1 \N | Turnip, diced |
| 1 small | Imported bay leaf and 5 sprigs fresh |
| \N \N | Parsley, tied together with kitchen twine |
| ¼ teaspoon | Ground allspice |
| ¼ teaspoon | Crushed red pepper flakes |
| 6 cups | Chicken broth |
| 4 \N | Fresh sausages (mild Italian) |
| \N \N | Salt |
| \N \N | Freshly ground black pepper |
Soak the navy beans overnight in plenty of cold water; the next day drain the beans and rinse them under cool water. Set aside. Place the oil and onion in a soup kettle, set over low heat and cook slowly until the onion has softened, about 5 minutes. Increase the heat to medium, add the garlic and celery and stir-cook for 1 minute. Drop in the bay leaf and parsley bundle. Stir in the allspice, red pepper flakes, broth, and navy beans. Bring the soup base to a boil, skimming it as necessary; boil 3 minutes. Cover and simmer for 1½ hours, or until the beans are quite tender. Discard the parsley-bay leaf bundle. (The soup may be prepared in advance to this point.) To finish the soup, grill the sausages under the broiler or pan-fry them for about 20 minutes, letting them cook for 10 minutes on each side. Slice the sausage into ⅓-inch disks. Add the sausage rounds to the soup and let simmer for 5 minutes longer to blend the flavors.
Season with salt and freshly-ground pepper to taste. Ladle the soup into warm bowls and serve piping hot.
Makes 5 servings.
[WASHINGTON POST JAN 11, 1989] Posted by Fred Peters.