New Year greetings to one and all, and I hope that 2013 has been good to all of you thus far.
As always, the seasons of yesteryear have come and gone to usher in the new. Today is the day that decorations and other trappings are coming down as the last of the holiday grog is sipped. The tree gets boxed away. The lights get rolled up and packed. New Calendars replace the old, so in effect, Christmas is done, except for one thing... your fridge is still filled with leftover goodies.
The one that tends to stick out the most is that ubiquitous holiday ham, because let's face it; some of you may not have finished it off and are probably wondering what you could possibly do with the remainder. Fear not, for I have a few recipes you can try right here. They're simple, tasty and as always, make for deliciously filling meals you're sure to enjoy.
Happy 2013!
Ham Hash
Ingredients
3 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 medium potatoes, peeled, cooked, and diced
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 green sweet pepper, finely chopped
1 cup finely diced cooked ham
Salt to taste
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried crumbled thyme
Preparation
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium low to
medium heat. Add remaining ingredients; mix well.
Cook hash until well browned, stirring frequently.
• Serve warm.
Lentil Hambone Soup
Ingredients
1 meaty leftover ham bone
6 - 7 cups water
1 1/2 cups dried lentils
2 cups sliced carrots
2 medium potatoes, large dice
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped onion
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 bay leaf
Chopped fresh parsley for garnish
Preparation
• In a stock pot or large kettle, combine ham bone, water, lentils, carrots, potatoes, celery, onion, salt, sugar, pepper and bay leaf.
• Cover and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for about
1 hour, or until lentils are tender.
• Take out the ham bone and remove the meat. Chop meat
and return to lentil soup. Remove bay leaf.
• Ladle into your soup bowls and garnish with a sprinkle
of chopped fresh parsley.
(Note: If your ham was baked with studded cloves,
don't remove them from the leftover pieces. There's still enough flavour in the meat that will permeate the entire soup pot.)
