Ham and Potato Soup

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/delicious-ham-and-potato-soup/ 

Straight from Allrecipes, with very few modifications, this soup was DELICIOUS and really hearty. 

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 cups peeled and diced potatoes
• 1/3 cup diced celery
• 1/3 cup finely chopped onion
• 1.5 cups diced cooked ham
• 3 1/4 cups water
• 2 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk

Directions

1. Combine the potatoes, celery, onion, ham and water in a stockpot. Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. 
2. Stir in the chicken bouillon, salt and pepper.
3. In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. 
4. Whisk in flour with a fork, and cook, stirring constantly until thick, about 1 minute. 
5. Slowly stir in milk as not to allow lumps to form until all of the milk has been added. 
6. Continue stirring over medium-low heat until thick, 4 to 5 minutes.
7. Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot, and cook soup until heated through. 
8. Serve immediately.

Bacon, Sweet Potato, Pea Pasta

INGREDIENTS

• 6 strips of bacon, cooked to desired crispness (optional)
• 1 cup frozen peas, cooked
• 3 small sweet potatoes, cooked
• pasta of choice
• Parmesan cheese 
• Butter

DIRECTIONS
Mix all and enjoy!

Bean and Ham Soup

A first for us...a trial. It turned out pretty good.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup cubed hm
• 2 cups Great Northern Beans
• 1/2 an 8-ounce can tomato sauce
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 2 cups baby carrots, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp butter
• salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large pot, saute onions, carrots and garlic in butter until crisp tender. 
2. Add ham and saute for another couple minutes.
3. Add broth and tomato sauce and mix well.
4. Bring to a boil then cover and reduce heat to simmer. 
5. Simmer for 20 minutes, or until beans and veggies are tender.

Ham and Scalloped Potatoes

I decided to try out a different recipe this time.. it's pretty similar to the last one, with a few changes, but those few changes made a rather large difference! My husband went back for seconds... and thirds! :)

Recipe modified from Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook: Feasting with your Slow Cooker by Dawn J Ranck and Phyllis Pellman Good.

INGREDIENTS

* 4 medium potatoes, thinly sliced
* 1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
* 1/2 cup chopped frozen onions
* 1 cup chopped cooked ham
* 1 can cream of celery soup
* 4 stalks celery, sliced
* paprika to taste


DIRECTIONS

Layer potatoes, ham, celery, shredded cheese and onion in slow cooker.
Spoon soup evenly over the potato and ham mixture.
Sprinkle with paprika.

Cover and cook on High for 2 hours then on low for 3 hours.
(original recipe calls for cooking on Low 8-10 hours, or High 4 hours)

Slow Cooker Scalloped Potatoes with Ham

For 2 of us, I could have made 2/3 of this recipe and had plenty! It was good comfort food but I think I will make a few changes for next time. I think it would be good to add a bit more cheese and to include broccoli in the recipe (as opposed to having it as a side). It also needed some spices and I would not add any salt as it was salty enough with the cream of mushroom soup in there.
Original recipe from allrecipes.com HERE

INGREDIENTS

* 5 small to medium potatoes, thinly sliced
* 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
* 1/2 cup chopped frozen onions
* 1 cup chopped cooked ham
* 1 can cream of mushroom soup
* 1/2 cup water
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon pepper

DIRECTIONS

Place potatoes, shredded cheese, onion and ham in slow cooker. Mix.
Mix together soup and water. Add garlic powder, salt and pepper. Pour evenly over the potato and ham mixture.

Cover and cook on High for 4 hours.