One Pot Ham & Veggie Pasta

Today’s recipe, Ham & Veggie Pasta, is a hearty meal but easy to make for busy weeknights. What makes it superb for summer is all the cooking is in one stove top pot. For summer, I suggest you buy a center cut ham steak of about 1 to 2 pounds. 2 cups of chopped ham is approximately 1 pound; you’ll need 2 1/2 cups for 6 servings. When fall and winter comes, use leftovers from your baked ham. I used a defrosted frozen green peas and carrot mix for my veggies, but you could just use green peas or another vegetable.

I like cute bow tie pasta (Farfalle), but you can change up this recipe by using a different pasta shape or switching out Parmesan for another cheese. If you don’t eat pork, substitute bite-sized pieces of other cooked protein. The sauce is based on low sodium chicken broth and half-and-half. Half-and-half comes in variations, including low-fat and fat-free varieties. Regular half-and-half is 10.5% to 12% fat. Low-fat has 50% less fat than regular half-and-half. Fat-free half-and-half has one-tenth the fat of regular half-and-half. I suggest low fat half-and-half to cut fat but retain the creamy flavor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One Pot Ham & Veggie Pasta

Use organic when available. Serves 6.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 1/2 cups cubed cooked ham
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 1/4 cup low-fat half-and-half
• 1/4 cup flour
• 16 oz package farfalle (bow tie) pasta
• 2 cups frozen peas and carrots defrosted
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper to taste
• optional chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions

• Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat
• Add onion and ham
• Sauté for about 3 minutes
• Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds
• Stir in Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper
• Cook for 2 minutes
• Whisk together chicken broth, half-and-half, and flour in a bowl until smooth
• Pour into the pot of ham mix
• Stir in farfalle pasta, cover, and cook for 15 minutes
• Add peas and carrots
• Cook until pasta is cooked through, about 8 more minutes
• Stir in Parmesan cheese
• Optional garnish with chopped parsley
• Serve immediately with bread and a salad   

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Easter Bean & Ham Bone Soup

 

When I was growing up, Easter usually meant a ham dinner. Of course, I love the memories of my mother's cooking and being with my family. I must admit most of the time when I was older and cooked Easter dinner for family, I bought a spiral sliced ham. If you are having ham on Easter or any other occasion, don't just throw away the bone from your ham. It's great for soup and ham broth. It's also wonderful to add to a pot of collard greens or cabbage. You can keep the ham bone in the fridge for 5 days or freeze it for at least a few months.

 

 

 

Today's recipe is classic white bean and ham soup. Very often family members get tired of a holiday menu when having it warmed up several times. Besides adding the ham bone for great flavor, the soup is the perfect way to use left over ham and vegetables. The next time you have a ham dinner for the family, plan to make bean and ham soup and use the ham bone and any leftovers in the soup. I'm using navy beans, but you could add other beans or peas too. Add onions, celery, carrots, garlic, and herbs for a comforting bowl that's inexpensive and filling. If you don't have a ham bone, you can use a ham hock. It's similar. I was raised in the south so I grew up with homemade corn bread to accompany the meal, but it's great with rolls, biscuits, or crusty bread.

Bean & Ham Bone Soup

Use organic when available. 8 Servings

Ingredients

• 16 oz dried navy beans (or great northern beans)
• 8 cups water
• 1 ham bone or smoked ham hock
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup diced onion
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped carrot
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp mustard
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• bay leaves
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 cups chopped ham

Instructions

• Sort and rinse beans
• Soak beans overnight in large pot or bowl covered with at least 4 inches of water
• Drain and discard the liquid
• Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a 4-quart soup pot over medium high heat
• Add onion and celery & cook for 2 minutes
• Add garlic and cook for another minute
• Add 8 cups of water to soup pot with lemon juice, beans, bone, thyme, parsley, mustard, salt, pepper, and bay leaves
• Bring the mixture to a boil
• Reduce heat to low and simmer covered
• Cook for 2 to 3 hours
• Stir occasionally and add more water if needed
• Add chopped ham and carrots the last 20 to 30 minutes of cooking
• When beans are tender, remove bone and cut off any meat
• Discard bone, gristle and bay leaves
• Add ham back to pot
• If soup seems too thin, use potato masher to mash some of the beans in the soup
• Optional sprinkle fresh chopped herbs or green onion on bowl of soup
• Serve with crusty bread, corn bread, rolls or biscuits

Enjoy!

 

 

 

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