Delicious Ham and Potato Soup

This is a delicious recipe for ham and potato soup that a friend gave to me. It is very easy and the great thing about it is that you can add additional ingredients, more ham, potatoes, etc and it still turns out great. It's a hearty, easy to do soup that’s ready in about 45 minutes. Perfect for using up leftover ham.

• Ready In: 45 mins
• Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 3 1⁄2 cups  peeled and diced potatoes
• 1⁄3 cup  diced celery
• 1⁄3 cup  finely chopped onion
• 3⁄4 cup  diced cooked ham
• 3 1⁄4 cups water
• 2  tablespoons chicken bouillon granules
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt (to taste)
• 1  teaspoon pepper (white or black to taste)
• 5  tablespoons butter
• 5  tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2  cups milk

Directions

1. 1. Combine the potatoes, celery, onion, ham and water in a stockpot. Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the chicken bouillon, salt and pepper.
2. 2. In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour with a fork, and cook, stirring constantly until thick, about 1 minute. Slowly stir in milk as not to allow lumps to form until all of the milk has been added. Continue stirring over medium-low heat until thick, 4 to 5 minutes.
3. 3. Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot, and cook soup until heated through. Serve immediately.
4. My Note: We don't care for cooked celery so I use a little celery seed . I use this recipe as a base also, with many variations , such as -- no meat at all , italian sausage & extra onion, (my favorite), diced chicken breast & (presteamed) broccoli (my grandkids' favorite !)and coming soon .garlic, chicken breast, baby carrots, frozen corn,green beans and coarsely chopped onion. Making the white sauce separately really added the right creaminess to the potato/ham & veggie mixture. I used a can of chicken broth for part of the liquid, as I didn't have any bullion. Also threw in some shredded carrots I had on hand, plus 1/2 cup shredded cheese to the white sauce after it had thickened. Also, (to disguise the carrots), added a sprinkle of cheese to each bowl upon serving. Very creamy and tasty. Maybe a possibly of adding corn next time.