Do you enjoy serving ham on
holidays such as
Easter or
Christmas? If so, then chances are pretty good that you always have plenty left over! Instead of simply warming up pieces of ham to eat with the rest of your leftovers, consider cooking with them instead! Here are some of our favorite ways to use leftover ham.
Scrambled Eggs
Instead of serving ham with scrambled eggs on the side, try mixing it in with the eggs instead. Scramble the eggs as you normally would. Add some olive oil to a skillet and add some of the small pieces of ham you’ve cut (the equivalent of a slice or two). Cook for a minute or two before adding the eggs. Garnish the eggs with a tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley or chives.
Quesadillas
Do you like quesadillas? If so, consider making your next batch with ham! The nice thing about quesadillas is that they are incredibly versatile. Try
this recipe for Hawaiian-style quesadillas, which includes leftover ham, crushed pineapple, peppers, and cheese. You can also add cut-up pieces of ham to any quesadilla recipe you desire.
Breakfast Casserole
Making a breakfast casserole is another way to use up leftover ham. If the recipe doesn’t actually call for ham, you can simply add it anyway! For instance, if you follow
this recipe, simply add ½ cup of diced ham at the same time that you add the sausage to the casserole. Or, you could always omit the sausage and just use ham.
Split Pea Soup
Once you eat all of the ham, there’s still more that you can do with the leftovers! Instead of throwing out the leftover bone, you can use it to make
split pea soup! All you need is the bone, some split peas, carrots, celery, and onions. In fact, you don’t need to wait until you cook a ham in order to enjoy this soup. You can easily use ham shanks in the recipe, instead.
Sandwiches
Do you like ham sandwiches? Instead of using sliced deli ham, consider using your leftovers! Cut the ham slices as thin as possible and prepare the sandwiches how you enjoy them. Try slathering mayonnaise on both sides of the bread and adding slices of ham, cheese, tomato, and lettuce. You can also make a grilled ham and cheese sandwich instead of leaving it cold. To give your grilled sandwich a fun twist, slather the bread with strawberry, raspberry, or cranberry jam or jelly before adding the ham and cheese.
Pizza
Ham makes an excellent topping for pizza! Top an unbaked pizza crust with sauce, cheese, cubed ham, and any other toppings you desire. For instance, you can top your pizza with ham and pineapple to make a Hawaiian-style pizza. However, ham tastes great with other ingredients, such as mushrooms, peppers, and even artichokes.
Try some of these ideas the next time you have leftover ham!
© Featured Photo by Peerajit from iStockPhoto