The Best Baked Potato Soup EVER®

For the holidays many of us get one of those beautiful spiral hams. You set it out on your table and it always gets oohs and aahs. There's nothing like a fabulous ham. Am I right?

For Thanksgiving we served two turkeys - one smoked, one roasted, and then there was also the spiral cut ham. Because we Cubans like an abundant table.

There are a dozen things to do and make with the leftover turkey. But what, you're probably wondering, do you do with the left over ham bone? You make the Best Baked Potato Soup EVER^®. Of course.

Okay, I know you can also make a really great split pea soup, but that's not my favorite. I'll write about that another day. Right now, let's make...

The Best Baked Potato Soup EVER^®

Ingredients

• 1 ham bone with lots of visible meat
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 4 cups water
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
• 5 or 6 medium-sized red or Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes - You can also use Russets for a heartier flavor, but they take a little longer to cook and make the soup starchier.
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 4 pieces of bacon - cooked and crumbled
• green onions - sliced
• Sour cream to taste

Directions

1) Place ham bone, diced onion, water, diced celery, salt, black pepper, and white pepper in a big pot on the stove over medium heat and bring to a boil.

2) Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes or until the ham separates easily from the bone with a fork.

3) Remove ham from pot and shred some of the meat from the bone. Discard any fat, then return to pot.

4) Add diced potatoes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the potatoes are fork tender.

5) While potatoes are cooking, melt butter in a medium saucepan, over medium heat. Be careful not to brown or burn the butter.

6) Add flour, stirring constantly until mixture thickens into a loose dough.

7) Stir in half-and-half, stirring constantly over medium heat until it's all creamy and thick and bubbly. Careful not to scorch! When it's nice and thick (you can tell by what's on the spoon), remove from heat.

8) At this point you can remove the bone and discard. When the potatoes are tender, stir the sauce mixture into the potato pot, stirring constantly. Let simmer until the soup reaches the desired consistency. The potatoes will break down a little and add to the thickness. It's kind of beautiful. You can add milk if you want it less thick.

9) You may want to add more salt and pepper to taste at this point.

10) Top your soup with bacon, cheddar cheese, green onions, and even a little bit of sour cream.

Congratulations! You just made The Best Baked Potato Soup EVER^®!

Buen Provecho!

Sharing is caring! If you decide to make this soup, please be sure and share with me. You're welcome to post on the My Big, Fat, Cuban Family Facebook page.