Ham and Potato Soup

Ham and Potato Soup


The day started out rainy, and it never really warmed up. When autumn arrives, so does soup. I was dreaming up the soup yesterday, knowing there were two ham bones (and plenty of frozen leftover ham, to boot) on deck. 


The morning was stock making time. Mirepoix, coarsely cut, received a quick saute, then bones, herbs and spices took the plunge for a long simmer. 


We pulled meat from the bones after lunch, then added in potatoes, additional meat, and a hint of milk (for mouth-feel; it's all about that mouth-feel sometimes). I was trying to split the difference between a creamy soup and a broth, and it worked out just that way. I hate overly-soggy veggies, so the first round was removed and new veggies (with some corn for fun) went back in. 


The ham had been really smokey, and the broth was as well.


Served up with a nice handful of shredded cheddar and some bacon cheddar muffins my wife made.


The Verdict


Comforting, stick-to-the ribs soup, gooey cheese, and fresh-baked muffins? How could it be bad?

Long Hiatus

I am terrible about keeping up with things sometimes. This blog qualifies as one of those things, and I'm not surprised. But I'm back, at least for now, and have something fun to write about.

We (my wife, daughter, and I) went apple picking last weekend, and have about 15 lbs. of the fruit on our counter. My wife does most of the baking in our house, and I'm OK with that. But I needed to do my part to help use up some of the goods.

My mind immediately went "duck" when I thought about what to cook with the apples (and no, this is not because of any humorous jabs taken at my wife; I was thinking of the fowl). We were lucky enough to find some bone-in duck legs at Gene's Sausage Shop. As an added bonus, they sell a double-smoked pork tenderloin as well, and I knew what I'd be concocting at that point quite clearly.

I decided to remove the meat from the bones on the duck legs in the interest of time. I'd have preferred to have roasted those instead, but there were other things to do (like nap for a change) this particular Sunday. I cooked out a good bit of the fat from the skin, removed the partially cooked duck, chopped it into small cubes, and returned it to the pan to cook a bit more.

Later in the day I cubed up about 4 apples and the pork. I sauteed these along with the now-cooled duck in some butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, sage, a bit of honey, some raisins, and dried cherries. These went into a 9x9 casserole dish, topped with thin layer of shredded cheddar cheese, and then a nice layer of puff pastry (I try to keep some in the freezer at all times).

The Verdict

Yummy comfort food. If you want an opinion beyond that, ask my wife. Wish we'd had a nice bottle of Bordeaux tonight, however. Ah well...