White Bean and Ham Soup

Now that Easter dinner is over,what do you do with the leftover Easter ham? This white bean and ham soup is a great way to use some of it. It is easy to make and quick too.Try serving this soup with paninis and a berry bowl for dessert.

Ingredients:
1 15.5 can of cannelloni beans, drained
1 diced onion
1 chopped carrot
1 celery stalk chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 cups of chicken stock
1 cup ham cut in cubes
1 sliced baby zucchini
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Preparation: 
Heat olive oil in soup pot until hot but not smoking. Saute onions, carrot and celery until golden. Add garlic powder, chicken stock and garlic powder and bring to a boil. Reduce the temperature and cook for 15 minutes. Remove one cup of mixture from the pot and puree it using a stick blender. Return pureed amount back into soup pot. Add ham and sliced zucchini and simmer for another 15 minutes.

If your kids don't like zucchini, it can be eliminated.
Serves 4

 

New Years Ham for Good Luck

There is an old European custom that says everyone should eat pork on New Years Day for good luck in the coming year. Some of the traditions include having sauerkraut and black eyed peas with the pork. Since some of my family members won't eat sauerkraut and no one will eat black eyed peas, we settle for  a one third of a lucky year and just have ham. I always use a shank portion of ham, with no water added. The spiral sliced and honey glazed are all the rage, but they must be eaten cold. I don't like putting a cold ham on the table, so I prepare and glaze my ham myself. I use maple syrup, orange juice, and cinnamon on mine. I don't "spiral slice," but use a technique that a neighbor told me about. From the outer rind, cut towards the bone making the cut as deep as possible. Do this three times and then cut your slices from each third by following the already outlined sections.This results are great and you can get more slices from your ham.

Ingredients: 
One 10 to 12 pound ham, Shank portion
1 cup water
1 1/2  cup real maple syrup
1/2 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preparation: 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place ham in roaster pan, add 1 cup of water and cover  tightly with aluminum foil. Cook in oven for 3 hours. Mix together syrup,orange juice and cinnamon. After 3 hours, remove foil and baste with maple syrup mixture. Cook in oven uncovered for 1 hour. Remove from oven and let stand for 15 minutes. Slice and serve.