Fifteen bean soup

Ever see those bags of fifteen bean soups at the market? All those bright and colorful beans were hard to resist, so I gave them a try. Here's the mix; lima beans, pink pinto beans, navy, beans, cannelini beans, black beans, cranberry beans, kidney beans, garbanzo beans, great northern beans, white beans, pink beans, lentils, split yellow and green peas, and black-eyd peas... Phew! It comes with a smokey ham flavor packet, but toss that and make your own stock with a ham hock or ham bone instead. Be warned that once you cook all those colorful beans they turn a monochromatic shade of belch. I mean it was really visually unappealing. I brightened the soup up with carrots, a half a butternut squash, and parsley. Kale would have been be a nice addition too.