Easter Ham Makes the Best Soup!

The best part of that Easter ham might well be the fabulous soups you can create from the leftovers. This year I made a trio of soups....all different...all delicious. I started out by cooking a split pea soup in my crockpot overnight.

Ingredients:  SPLIT PEA SOUP

1 pound rinsed split peas

1 large onion, chopped

1tsp chopped garlic

2 stalks chopped celery

2 chopped carrots

1 cup mashed potatoes (I usually put 1 chopped potato, but I had mashed them all, so I had to get creative!)

1 box chicken broth 

About 2 cups chopped up ham

3 a 4 cups of water

Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Put all ingredients in crockpot and cook overnight. Cool and refrigerate or freeze until ready to eat.

The next morning I got up, ready to start the rest of my soup marathon. I had soaked all the beans overnight in cold water.

Ingredients:  NAVY BEAN SOUP

1 pound pre rinsed and soaked great northern beans

1 ham bone with a generous amount of ham still attached

1 large onion

1 tsp chopped garlic

A little chopped carrot and celery

1 tsp dried sage leaves

1 large bay leaf 

1 box chicken broth

1 quart water

1 cup milk

Salt and pepper to taste

1tbsp butter

2tbsp olive oil

Method:

Cook onion in butter and olive oil until transparent

Add garlic and stir around

Add carrots and celery and stir to coat with oil and butter

Add pre soaked beans and ham bone

Add chicken broth and water

Season with sage leaves, bay leaf salt and pepper

Cook for several hours.....until beans are tender

Add milk and heat through 

Serve and enjoy....would be great with crusty bread, but then what wouldn't?

I was then ready to start my Cajun ham and bean soup. 

Ingredients:  CAJUN HAM AND BEAN SOUP

1 pound pre rinsed and soaked 16 bean mix.....Throw away the ham flavored seasoning packet...you won't need it!

1 large onion

2 tsp chopped garlic

Chopped carrot and celery...a couple stalks of each

1 jalapeño, chopped very fine

Corn.....I used about half a cup of leftover corn from Easter

2 cups chopped ham

1 14 ounce can diced tomatoes, with juice

1 quart chicken broth....veggie broth would work well too

Chili powder

Cumin

2 bay leaves

Dried red pepper flakes

Cayenne pepper

Salt and pepper

(I didn't measure any of these spices, as I was simply "feeling it....lol")

Method:

Put all ingredients in soup pot and cook for several hours, until largest beans are cooked tender.

Serve and enjoy!  This would be fantastic with corn bread....

I freeze all of these soups, and they are fine for several weeks. Here is a pic of my "Trio of Ham Soups."