Vegetable Ham-Bone Soup

I had a lovely spiral ham for Christmas Eve dinner and was left over with a large bone, which I tossed into the freezer so I could make something with it later. So here comes my Vegetable Ham-Bone Soup from the slow cooker. The flavour of the ham and peas is rich and comforting, well worth the wait!

1 1/2 cups of dried yellow peas, rinsed in cold water

1 meaty ham bone

3 good sized potatoes, peeled and cubed

3 stalks of celery, diced

2 large carrots, peeled and diced

1 medium onion, chopped

1 to 2 tsp of salt

1/2 tsp of dried thyme

freshly ground pepper

water

1. In a 6 qrt. slow cooker, place all ingredients, pour water in until the ham bone is completely covered. 
2. Cover and heat at setting #3 for 8 to 10 hours. Remove the ham bone (it will be soft and fall apart). Enjoy!

Leftover Turkey Soup

What’s the point of making great stock if you don’t use some right away? This soup is a generic-stuff-leftover-in-my-fridge kind of soup. You don’t have to follow the recipe exactly. Use whatever you have on hand. The below recipe is something I threw together and it was delicious.

1 cup dried Navy Beans (substitute with pasta if desired)

3 slices of bacon or pancetta, diced

2 carrots, medium dice

5 shallots, sliced

3 cloves or garlic, minced

1 stalk of celery, chopped

3 potatoes, diced

1 tablespoon butter

4 cups of stock

Left over turkey meat (however much you have 1/2c or a cup)

Splash white wine

Thyme, marjoram, salt & pepper

1. Prepare the dried beans as instructed on the package. Note: A “quick hot soak” takes at least 1 hour, so prepare this ahead of time.
2. Cook the bacon in a large pot until just crisp and add wine to deglaze. Add onions, carrots, garlic, and butter. Cook on low heat for approx 10 mins until onions are translucent.
3. Add stock, celery, potatoes, spices, turkey and beans. Bring to a boil and simmer for approx 20 minutes until potatoes and beans are tender. Correct seasonings and enjoy.

Turkey Stock

I’m giving you two posts today. The first is how to make turkey stock from your leftover turkey carcass. The second, is a recipe for a leftover turkey and vegetable soup. Both are easy to make and super yummy. 

Turkey Stock

This stock recipe can also be used for chicken carcass’s too. Either way, it’s fresh, homemade and can be frozen and used later for many things. I like to freeze my stock in ice cubes trays. This way I can use them in rice, quinoa, or other recipes which call for a little bit of stock. 

Turkey Carcass

2 carrots, rough chop

4 stalks of celery, rough chop

4 cloves of garlic

2 med. onions, quartered

2 parsnips, rough chop (optional)

salt, pepper, thyme

Put all in a large stock pot. Fill with water so that turkey is covered. Bring to boil and then simmer for 1 1/2 hours. 

Strain the bones and veg. 

Allow to cool (I put in the fridge overnight).

Strain the fat from the top of the stock. 

Freeze or use right away.

Butternut Squash Soup

Butternut Squash Soup

This is a very easy recipe. It’s sweet and tasty and was a fabulous fall soup to start a big turkey dinner.

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 small onion

Kosher Salt

2 sprigs thyme

1 medium butternut squash soup, peeled and cubed

1 teaspoon sugar

3 tablespoons heavy cream (optional)

Freshly ground pepper

Melt butter in a large saucepan over low heat. Add the onion and 1 teaspoon of salt. Strip the thyme leaves into the pot, increase heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add the squash and sugar and cook, stirring, until glazed, 3 to 4 minutes. Add 5 cups of water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, until the squash is tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

Puree until smooth with either an immersion blender or traditional blender. Stir in heavy cream, if desired. Season with salt and pepper and top as desired.

I topped with small pieces of bacon, fresh sage leaves and I roasted off the butternut squash seeds with salt and pepper and placed a few on top of the soup.

I made everything ahead of time and when I was ready to serve, I heated the soup up, added the cream and topped in the bowls.

Leek & Potato Soup

Leeks and potatoes are in season right now and while wandering the Hamilton Farmer’s Market on Saturday I couldn’t resist bringing them home with me to make my yummy Leek and Potato Soup. This recipe is also vegetarian.

4 medium potatoes (2 1/2 cups cut into 1/4” dice)

2 small leeks, trimmed, sliced thin

1/2 cup chopped celery

2 cups water

3 1/2 cups milk

1 tablespoon of flour

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 cup milk

Put potatoes, leeks, celery and water in a large pot. Cover and boil 8 to 10 minutes until tender. Add the 3 1/2 cups of milk, then the flour and salt blended with the 1/2 cup milk to form a smooth paste. Stir thoroughly, reheat to the boiling point, stirring often, then simmer 2 or 3 minutes.

At this point in time you can eat it as it is, or like I do, stick the hand blender in until it’s a smooth creamy soup.

Makes 4 generous servings.