Imagine taking a bowl of macaroni and cheese-with some ham and broccoli-and turning it into a rich, creamy soup. Well, that is exactly what I did!
December is here and I think it is safe to say that it is officially “Soup Season!” This Hammy Mac & Cheese Soup is the perfect way to start it off, if you haven’t been pulling out your Dutch oven and putting it to good use already.
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This soup is a great way to use up some of that left over holiday ham that you have in your freezer. Tell me I’m not the only one that intentionally cooks way more meat than necessary on the holidays, so I can freeze portions for future meals. If you don’t, you should!
Today, I shared this recipe over at Hip Homeschool Moms. You can see the post with all of the step-by-step photos here.
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Hammy Mac & Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- ½ c diced onion
- 2 Tb butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1½ c uncooked elbow macaroni, cook to half the package instruction time
- 3 c chicken broth
- 2 c half & half
- 1 Tb country style Dijon mustard
- 4 oz light cream cheese, room temperature
- 1½ – 2 c diced, cooked ham
- 10 oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 2 c frozen broccoli florets
- 1/16 teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- To begin, cook the diced onion in a Dutch oven with the butter. Cook this over medium low heat until tender. Then add in the minced garlic. Cook for another minute.
- While those are cooking, you’ll cook the elbow macaroni. Look at your package’s instructions and only cook them for half of the time shown. If your cook time is 10 minutes, only cook them for 5. Then drain the noodles and set them aside.
- When the onion and garlic have cooked together for a minute, add in the chicken broth, half & half, mustard, cream cheese, and ham.
- Let those all cook together over medium heat, until the cream cheese is completely melted in. You will need to stir this soup frequently as it cooks. Once the cream cheese is completely melted in, add in the shredded sharp cheddar cheese.
- Add in the frozen broccoli florets, your semi-cooked macaroni, the turmeric, and black pepper. Let this cook together until the broccoli and noodles are just done, about 4-5 minutes.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is auto-generated and the accuracy is not guaranteed.
Note: I no longer eat pork, however I am leaving recipes like this one up for those who enjoy it. Many pork recipes can be easily converted to turkey or chicken recipes, with little or even no other changes. Recipes with bacon or sausage can use alternatives like beef or turkey bacon. Many of those recipes are being updated with the changes. Article: Why I Quit Eating Pork