Creamy Ham & Potato Soup

Happy Friday!

We've been raising pigs here at Lazuli Farms for almost 4 years but have NEVER actually had our butcher make bone-in hams for us.  Until NOW!

On our last pork order, we ordered bone-in pork roasts in a half-leg size. These hams are  nice and big at about 6 to 8 lbs each!  That's a lot of ham!

We cooked up the first bone-in ham and were in love with the flavour.  We had mashed potatoes, veggies, and ham for our first meal, then made a big pot of creamy ham & potato soup the next day.  Enough soup for TWO meals.  Plus, we froze three more portions of ham for future meals.  I'm thinking ham & broccoli quiche, ham & cheese omelettes, and ham & rice casserole!

The recipe below is a hearty, creamy soup with ham, potatoes, and cheese.  The cheese is totally optional but who doesn't love cheese!

To order your bone-in ham from Lazuli Farms, head here!

Creamy Ham & Potato Soup Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons bacon grease, lard, butter, or olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 3 large potatoes, washed & diced (leave skins on)
• 4 cups beef, pork, or chicken broth
• 4 cups water
• 4 tablespoons bacon grease, lard, or butter
• 4 tablespoons flour
• 2 cups milk
• 1 cup cheese
• 1 cup chopped leftover ham
• salt & pepper to taste

Instructions:

Place bacon grease in a large saucepan or dutch oven on the stovetop over medium heat.  Once bacon grease melts, add onions and celery and saute until the onion is cooked.  Add  water, broth, and potatoes.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and turn down to simmer.  Simmer for 30 to 40 minutes until the potatoes are cooked.  You can simmer the soup for hours on low, if needed.

In a separate saucepan or cast iron pan, melt the bacon grease over medium heat.  Add the flour.  Whisk until the flour is mixed in.  Add milk a little at a time, whisking after each addition.  This forms your "roux". 

Add your roux to the soup.  Add cheese, ham and salt & pepper to the soup.

Heat over medium heat until thickened to desired thickness.

Serve with sourdough bread.