Ham and White Bean Soup

With the flu going around our family and the extra mild spring temperatures lately, it was time for some soup. I had a leftover ham bone that I've been wanting to use up, and everyone being sick was the perfect opportunity to use it up. Yes, I could've gone with chicken noodle, but this just sounded delicious and a welcome break from the bland toast I've eaten the past couple of days.

Even the babe was excited about getting a real dinner tonight...

Ham and White Bean Soup

1 ham bone

3 cups water

3 cups low sodium chicken broth

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 cup diced yellow onion

1 cup diced carrots

¼ tsp ground black pepper

2 teaspoons parsley (fresh or dried is just fine)

2 teaspoons seasoned salt

¼ tsp thyme

1 cup corn (frozen or fresh kernels are just fine)

1 cup frozen spinach, chopped (optional)

2 15oz cans white beans, drained and rinsed. (Apx 3-4 cups if using non canned)

2 cans (14 oz) diced tomatoes

1 cup diced ham (optional, but good if you want a little extra ham flavor)

In a crockpot, add all ingredients, minus the ham bone. Stir to combine, then carefully drop in the ham bone. Set crockpot to low, cover and allow to cook for 8 hours. Shortly before serving, scrape the ham bone of all remaining meat and dice ham if needed. Return diced ham to crockpot, serve soup with rolls or a side salad.

Serves 8-10.

You can easily halve this recipe to serve 4-6 people.