Cajun Style White Bean Soup - cooking recipe

Ingredients

8 ounces great northern beans
water, to cover beans
5 cups water
2 cups canned tomatoes, cut up or 16 ounces canned tomatoes
1 cup ham, meaty bone or 1 cup smoked pork hock
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup green pepper, chopped
1/2 cup celery, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon bottled hot pepper sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preparation

Put rinsed beans, in a 4 quart dutch oven and cover beans with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer beans, uncovered for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, cover and let stand for 1 - 2 hours. Drain beans and re-rinse.
Place the beans, water, undrained tomatoes, ham bone, onion, green peppers, celery, garlic and pepper back into same dutch oven. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 3 hours or until beans are tender.
Remove ham bone, when cool, cut meat from bone and return to soup and heat through. Stir in the hot pepper sauce, taste and season with salt.