Soup's on!

Try one of these ham soupes using you Easter leftovers. You won't be disappointed.

Ham Bone Chowder

Ingredients

1 meaty ham bone, fat trimmed

1 (32 fluid ounce) container chicken stock

1 onion, chopped

2 tablespoons chopped garlic

6 red potatoes, cubed

4 large carrots, chopped

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 cup frozen corn

1 cup milk

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Place ham bone in a slow cooker; top with chicken stock, onion, and garlic.

2. Cook on Low for 6 to 8 hours.

3. Remove ham bone from slow cooker; pull meat of bone and shred. Return meat to slow cooker and discard ham bone. Add potatoes, carrots, parsley, and cumin to soup.

4. Cook on High until potatoes are tender, about 45 minutes. Add frozen corn and stir.

5. Remove 1 cup soup and pour into a blender. Add milk to blender. Cover and hold lid down; pulse a few times before leaving on to blend. Return blended soup to slow cooker and stir. Season with salt and pepper.

The Best Bean and Ham Soup

Ingredients

1 (20 ounce) package 15 bean mixture, soaked overnight

1 ham bone

2 1/2 cups cubed ham

1 large onion, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

5 large carrots, chopped

1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, with liquid

1 (12 fluid ounce) can low-sodium vegetable juice

3 cups vegetable broth

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon chili powder

3 bay leaves

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon dried parsley

3 tablespoons lemon juice

7 cups low fat, low sodium chicken broth

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

1. Place the soaked beans into a large pot and fill with enough water to cover by about 1 inch. Bring to a boil, then simmer over low for 30 minutes. Drain. Add the ham bone, ham, onion, celery, carrots, tomatoes, vegetable juice, and vegetable broth. Season with Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, chili powder, bay leaves, pepper, parsley and lemon juice. Pour in enough of the chicken broth to cover the ingredients.

2. Simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, for about 8 hours. Add more chicken broth as needed throughout the day. Remove the ham bone and season with salt if needed. Continue to simmer for a couple more hours. Remove bay leaves before serving.

Sweet Potato, Potato, Leek, and Ham Soup

Ingredients

4 cups chicken broth

3 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed

3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups chopped cooked ham

4 leeks, chopped

1 cup half-and-half

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Bring chicken broth to a boil in a large Dutch oven. Add Yukon gold and sweet potatoes, bring back to a boil, and turn heat to medium-low. Simmer until tender, 10 to 20 minutes.

2. Heat vegetable oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add ham; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Add leeks; cook and stir until leeks are soft, about 5-10 minutes. Do not allow the leeks to brown.

3. Stir leek and ham mixture into potatoes and broth. Add half-and-half; season to taste with salt and ground black pepper.