Basic Basque Beans - cooking recipe

Ingredients

2 cups dried beans
2 large onions, chopped
5 large garlic cloves
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
2 sprigs parsley
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
salt & pepper
cayenne pepper

Preparation

Wash and pick over beans to discard any stone or other debris. After preliminary preparation, add fresh cold water (hot water toughens them) to about 2 inches above beans.
Add soup bones or ham hocks. Bring to a boil and skim off the foam that forms. After beans have simmered covered for about 45 minutes, and are beginning to soften, add the rest of the ingredients. (If onion or salt is added in the beginning, the beans may toughen).
Continue cooking for about 45 minutes, or until beans are very tender. Adjust seasoning to taste.