Ham and Bean Soup

OK, so what do you do with tons of leftover ham?? Sunday we had the ham dinner that started all of this. Monday we had Ham, Swiss and Pasta Casserole. Tuesday... what to make... what to make... Soup would be good, but what kind of soup? Since I had a 15 bean mix in the pantry, I thought that would be a good place to start. Ha! Do you know how many ham and bean soup recipes there are on the 'net? I can tell you --> A LOT!! I chose a recipe that I could use up most of the veggies I had in the fridge, leave out the things I didn't have, and hopefully it would still be good. Guess what? It was! :-)

This recipe is adapted from a recipe I got on allrecipes.com called The Best Bean and Ham Soup by BenevolentEmpress.

Ham and Bean Soup


Serves 8-10

• 1 pkg 15-bean mixture, soaked overnight
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 ham bone
• 1 lb ham, chopped
• 1 T chopped garlic in olive oil (heaping T of fresh garlic is good too)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 med-lg carrots, chopped
• 3 parsnips, chopped
• 1 lg turnip, peeled & diced
• 1 box (32 oz) vegetable broth
• 1 1/2 boxes (48 oz) chicken broth
• 2 T Worcestershire sauce
• 2 T Dijon mustard (if you only have honey dijon, that's ok too)
• 1 T chili powder
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 T cracked pepper
• 1 T dried parsley
• 3 T lemon juice (can use ReaLemon)
• 1 tsp kosher salt (regular is fine too)
• freshly grated pecorino romano, optional

Directions

1. Place soaked beans in large pot filled with enough water to cover beans by about 1 inch. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Using same large pot on medium-high heat, saute onion and garlic for 2-3 minutes.
3. Add in all remaining ingredient; bring to a boil and lower heat to a simmer for about 6 hours. Make sure you stir occasionally and add water or more chicken broth is liquid level gets too low. Mine only needed a pint of water added toward the end of cooking period.
4. Remove ham bone and bay leaves. Trim meat from ham bone and place in pot. Continue to simmer for another hour or so.

Super recipe! I hope you all enjoy it. There's nothing to the prep and it cooks itself!

Cheesy Goodness!

Between Christmas and New Years for the last couple of years, we have been having a ham dinner at our son and daughter-in-law's house. This past year brought a brand new baby into our lives. The newest member of our family (our first grandson) was born on December 30th, hence no ham dinner. I decided to made the ham dinner myself.

Geez, I haven't made a ham in I don't know how long. It's just not something we eat even once a year. After making it and sorting out the leftovers into future dinners, I'm not sure why we don't eat ham more frequently. It was delicious! I made a Smithfield Spiral Sliced Ham, corn casserole, and mashed potatoes. Can I say it? Yes! Total goodness!

This recipe is adapted from a recipe from the Smokestack Restaurant in Kansas City. I hope you like it!



Corn Casserole

Serves 6

• 4 slices bacon, fried and finely chopped
• 3 T unsalted butter
• heaping T chopped garlic in olive oil
• 1/4 c flour
• 1 1/2 c milk, 2% organic
• 2 oz cream cheese
• 1 oz cheddar cheese, cubed
• 1 c shredded Mexican blend cheese
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 1/2 lb frozen corn
• salt & pepper to taste

Directions

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Heat crumbled bacon on medium heat in saucepan for 3 minutes; add butter and garlic, cook til fragrant, about 1 minute.
3. Add flour, mix well for 1 minute.
4. Whisk in milk and bring to a boil; stir constantly while cooking until thickened for about 2 minutes.
5. Add cream cheese, cheddar cheese, Mexican blend shredded, and paprika; cook until smooth.
6. Remove from heat and stir in corn; season with salt & pepper.
7. Transfer mixture to a baking dish (approx 5x8) and bake until top is golden brown and bubbling, about 40 minutes. Let cool before serving.

Ham leftovers were plentiful so keep an eye out for more recipes!