Red Bean Soup

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup diced bacon
• 11/2 cups chopped yellow onions
• 1/4 cup chopped green bell peppers
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 4 bay leaves
• 8 ounces andouille, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch slices
• 1 small (5 to 6 ounce) smoked ham hock
• 2 cups dried red kidney beans, soaked overnight
• 1 tablespoon Essence, recipe follows
• 2 quarts chicken stock
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 3 tablespoons Sherry
• 1 1/2 cups cooked long-grain white rice, warm
• 6 tablespoons chopped green onions

Directions

Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over high heat. Add the bacon and saute for 2 minutes. Add the onions, bell peppers, garlic, bay leaves, andouille, and ham hock and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the beans and cook for 2 minutes. Add the Essence and stock, stir well, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 1 1/2 hours, until beans are tender, stirring occasionally. Add the salt and parsley, cover the pot, and cook for 15 minutes. Discard the ham hock and bay leaves. Remove 1 cup of beans from the pot and reserve.

With a hand-held immersion blender, or in batches in a food processor, puree the red beans. Add the Sherry and reserved beans, and stir well. To serve, ladle a generous cup of the soup into each of 6 bowls. Top each serving with 1/4 cup of the rice and 1 tablespoon of green onions.

Essence (Emeril's Creole Seasoning):

• 2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon dried leaf oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight jar or container.

Yield: about 2/3 cup

Recipe from "New New Orleans Cooking", by Emeril Lagasse and Jessie Tirsch. Published by William and Morrow, 1993.