Deviled Ham Sandwich Filling

If you’ve baked a large ham, and now the leftovers seem to be lingering, here’s a bit of help.  Make a batch of this delicious ham filling, spread it on slices of  your favorite bread, and you won’t even think “leftover”!  It’ll just be a yummy lunch 🙂

Deviled Ham

1 ½ cups chopped cooked ham

1/3 cup low-fat mayonnaise

2 tsp grainy mustard

½ tsp Worcestershire sauce

1/8 tsp Tabasco (optional)

Pickles

Thinly sliced sweet onion

Pulse ham with mayo, mustard, seasonings in food processor until finely chopped.  Spread bread slices with ham mixture, layer on pickles and sliced onion.  Slice and serve.

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Ham, Asparagus and Sweet Onion Pizza

We’ve been making our own pizza lately, and quite enjoying it.  Pizzeria pizza it’s not, but in its own way, just as good and better.  And thanks to this pizza crust yeast that I’ve discovered from Fleischmann’s,  it’s quick and easy from start to finish; first thing, turn on the oven to 430 degrees F so it gets nice and hot.  The pizza will be baked on the bottom rack.  Using two packages of the pizza crust yeast, and following the directions on the package, I used my stand mixer to mix and knead the dough, then pinned it out to fit a well-oiled 11.5″ x 16.5″ baking sheet.  While the dough was being kneaded, I gently sauteed some chopped asparagus in a bit of butter with a pinch of salt and a good grind of fresh pepper.  I used a bottled version of pizza sauce (for convenience tonight, but next time some marinara sauce would be better, I think).  Next came a sprinkling of grated mozzarella cheese, then a layer of chopped ham, the sauteed asparagus, then another sprinkling of mozzarella, and a handful of grated asiago cheese.  Finally I added a light layer of very thinly sliced sweet onion.  The pizza baked for 15 minutes.  At the table, we added some hot pepper flakes for a bit of zing.   It was yummy 🙂

Be sure to check out the Fleischmann’s website for further and better instructions and recipe ideas.  I really like this yeast, which needs only enough kneading to actually form the dough and no proof time.  I pulled my mixer out at 5:25 and we were eating at 6:05, with the kitchen mostly cleaned during baking time.  Easy, quick and delicious; I’m a happy baker!

Split Pea and Ham Soup

My mom used to make split pea and ham soup once in a while when I was a kid, but this is the first time that I’ve attempted it.  My childhood memories of  this particular soup aren’t all that fond, so maybe that’s why I’ve waited so long to give it a whirl.  Mom was (and still is) a very great cook , so I can only think it was my immature taste buds that led to the “ewwww” factor.  Hubby, on the other hand, is quite delighted that I’ve taken the plunge.  He’s always been a fan.  So here’s my version of:

Split Pea and Ham Soup

Make the broth first:

In a large pot, cover your ham bone (hopefully it has some nice meaty bits still clinging to it) with cold water.  Roughly chop a large onion and several (3-5) stalks of celery, including the leafy stems.  Add to the pot.  Season with your favorite seasonings, I put in 3 bay leaves and some salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil and then reduce to a slow simmer.  It will take at least 3 hours to make a rich stock.  Once the stock is to your satisfaction, remove from heat, and when it’s cooled a bit, fish out the ham bone and the meaty pieces.  Strain the broth until clear.  Discard the mushy veggies.  Cut meat into small pieces and reserve in the fridge.  Skim off undesired fat from the top of the broth.

Now the soup:

Return the clear stock to the stove with a couple of bay leaves and taste to adjust seasonings.   Pick over and rinse the split peas, then add to the stock.  Use 1 cup per about 3 cups broth (a guesstimate of the amount of broth is fine).  Over a medium simmer, let the peas cook until tender, about an hour.  At this point, if you prefer a smoother texture, use an immersion blender to puree the mixture, or you can even just mash a bit with a potato masher for a courser texture (which is what I did).

While the split peas are cooking, prepare the vegetables.  For about 6 cups broth, I used 3 carrots, 1 large onion, 3 ribs of celery and 3 cloves of garlic.  Dice and saute the veggies in a bit of oil or butter for about 4-5 minutes.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper if desired.  Add the sauteed vegetables to the stock along with the reserved meat.  Turn heat to low and let the soup simmer until vegetables are desired tenderness.