Black bean soup

1. Soak beans overnight, or for 3 hours or so. Place all ingredients in a large soup pot and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce to simmer. Let it cook all day. You're home will smell amazing.

2. Remove the ham bone or hocks at the end and return any meat to the soup if you'd like. Ham bones really are best for this soup as they give the most meat, but they are hard to find. I normally use ham hocks simply for the flavor and then just remove them completely.

3. As far as toppings go, the opportunities are endless. This soup has so much flavor that I prefer not to 'hide' that by going overboard with toppings and just chop up some fresh cilantro. Although loading it up with rice, cheese, tortilla strips, and a dollop of sour cream doesn't hurt either. All up to you.