Spouse is a real soup. I think she could eat it every day. She's always putting together different combinations to create new soups and our freezer always seems to be full of small individual sized plastic containers filled with single servings for a quick lunch or light dinner any time that's simple, wholesome and delicious. This particular soup is really an alternative to split pea soup using green lentils instead. It is a terrific soup to make using the leftovers from a bone-in baked ham dinner.
If you need a good baked ham recipe, here is our family's standard recipe: Dijon Mustard and Demerara Sugar Glazed Ham.

Ham and Green Lentil Soup

Simmer in 8 - 10  cups of water for 1 hour:

1 ham bone

3 bay leaves

1 medium red onion, chopped

Remove bone and add

2 cups diced leftover cooked ham
1cup of green lentils

Simmer for 30 minutes and add:

1 and ½ cups of diced carrots

1 and ½ cups diced celery

4 tbsps chopped fresh oregano

Freshly ground pepper

Simmer until vegetables and lentils are tender, about 30 minutes.

Cheddar Chive Biscuit & Tomato Eggs Benedict

Cheddar Chive Biscuit & Tomato Eggs Benedict

Here's a little lighter version of Eggs Benedict without using high fat Hollandaise sauce. In terms of flavor, I actually prefer this version with the high impact flavors of smokey ham, fresh tomato and warm from the oven cheddar chive biscuits. This is always on my weekend menu whenever we cook our favorite Dijon Mustard and Demerara Sugar Glazed Ham. I like to thinly slice the ham ans lightly pan fry it to use in this terrific brunch dish. This one could become your Sunday brunch classic.

This delicious brunch uses half a large, cheddar chive biscuit as the base, topped by lightly fried glazed ham, perfectly poached eggs and warm , spicy, fresh tomato compote. One outstanding brunch.

Cheddar and Chive Biscuits

Makes about 10 three inch biscuits

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

In a food processor, blend together

4 cups all purpose flour

9 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

Pulse in

1/4 cup + 1 tbsp very cold vegetable shortening, cut in small cubes (I store mine in the freezer)

1/4 cup + 1 tbsp very cold salted butter, cut in small cubes

Do not over incorporate the shortening and butter into the flour. Similar to making a flaky pastry, small pieces of butter should be visible in the flour. 

Transfer this mixture from the food processor into a large mixing bowl and make a well in the center. Toss in:

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, diced small

1/4 tbsp chopped fresh chives

Pour in

2 cups buttermilk

Working very quickly with a wooden spoon, fold the dry mixture through the buttermilk, only until the flour disappears, then stop immediately. Drop the sticky dough onto a well floured counter top or bread board. Sprinkle the top of the dough with additional flour as well as flouring your hands to handle the dough. I don't even use a rolling pin for these biscuits, the dough is soft enough to pat it out gently with floured hands to a thickness of about 1 & 1/2 inches. Using a sharp 3 inch or larger biscuit cutter cut the biscuits out an place them, almost touching, on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Alternately, you can cut the dough into three or for inch squares with a sharp knife. I recommend aluminum baking sheets because they tolerate the higher oven temperature without burning the bottom of the biscuits.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until the tops of the biscuits are evenly golden brown.

Spicy Tomato Compote

4 cloves minced garlic
6 tbsp olive oil
8 large ripe tomatoes diced
2 tbsp brown sugar
6 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp crushed chili sauce
salt and pepper to season

Saute the garlic in the oil over medium heat for just a minute before adding the tomatoes, brown sugar, chili sauce, salt, pepper. Continue to cook until the tomatoes soften and the compote reduces to a jam-like consistency. Add the balsamic vinegar in the final minute or two of cooking before serving.

Ham and Cheese Stromboli

Here's another leftover rescue recipe that I like to make the day after a baked ham dinner. We had a dijon and brown sugar glazed ham the previous night and managed to salvage enough of the ham to make this simple but delicious stromboli for supper last evening.

Makes 2 stromboli, serves 6-8.

Stromboli Dough:
3-4 cups all purpose flour
1 packet instant yeast
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 ¼ cups lukewarm water
1 ½ tsp sea salt

Mix dry ingredients together except for one cup of the flour. Add the warm water and mix very well with a wooden spoon for about 5 minutes. Add the remaining flour a little at a time until dough forms. Remove to a floured breadboard or your counter top and knead for an additional 5 minutes. Allow dough to rest for ½ hour, covered in a warm place. Knead again for 5 minutes and split dough into 2 portions and allow to rest for 20 minutes before rolling your dough into the desired size; for Stromboli, roll into about a 12 inch square.

Preheat a pizza stone in a 450 degree F oven for ½ hour.

Add the filling to the stromboli beginning with the cheese, layering the filling ingredients down the center line of the dough.

1 ½ cups grated sharp cheddar cheese, per stromboli
1 pound thinly sliced ham, per stromboli
Olives or sundried tomatoes make tasty additions if you like. Dijon mustard or garlic oil brushed on the dough is also very good.

Bring the edges of the dough to the center of the stromboli, covering the filling. Pinch the dough edges and ends together to seal. Gently roll the entire stromboli onto a cornmeal covered wooden pizza peel so that the seam is on the bottom. Cut 3 one inch slits, evenly spaced, in the top of the stromboli dough for venting. Shake the peel to make sure the stromboli moves freely on the cornmeal.

Slide the stromboli onto the hot stone, shaking it slightly in a back and forth motion as you slowly retract the wooden peel. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the top is evenly golden brown.Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before cutting into individual servings.