New Orleans Style Red Beans & Rice - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 lb kidney bean (I only use Camelia, however, I know that it is hard to find outside of New Orleans)
1 medium onion (chopped)
4 -5 garlic cloves (minced)
2 tablespoons margarine
seasoning salt (to taste, I use McCormick Season-All)
salt (optional)
pepper (to taste)
parsley flakes (approximately 1-2 tbsp)
8 bay leaves
1 lb smoked sausage, cut into 1 inch pieces (I prefer Cavanaugh or Hillshire Farms)
1 lb ham, cubes
water
1/2 cup margarine (I use Imperial)

Preparation

Rinse beans (optional: soak overnight or for several hours prior to cooking, in order to avoid possible gas effects that sometimes result when eating beans).
After rinsing, place the beans in the stock pot and fill 3/4 full of water. (The water will reduce as the beans cook). Bring to a boil.
After the water comes to a boil, saute chopped onions and garlic in approximately 2 tablespoon of margarine, then add it to the beans. Lower heat to med-high and cook for approximately one hour.
Add remaining seasoning, including seasoning salt, (optional) salt, pepper, parsley flakes, and bay leaves. Cook for another hour on med-high. Throughout cooking, add boiling water (and additional seasoning) to the pot, if the liquid reduces too much. Stir occasionally.
Next -- this is the \"magical step\" -- add 1 stick of butter and cook for another hour on med-high, stirring occasionally. Watch the heat and adjust accordingly to avoid scorching your beans.
Heat the ham and smoke sausage pieces in the microwave and add to the pot of beans. I like to heat the meat, so that my beans will continue cooking at its current temperature.
Continue to cook on medium to medium-low, as the beans thicken. Stir occasionally. NOTE: I stay pretty close to my pot when cooking beans, so I can make sure they don't begin to stick.
Serve over rice -- perhaps, add a piece of cornbread and ENJOY!