Ham and Potato Soup – Veggie-ful Kid Favorite and Gluten Free!

Getting kids to eat their veggies is an age old struggle. Somehow, this soup is loaded with veggies but my kids just eat it all up. This soup is why I will always opt for a bone-in ham. My kids get excited when we have a ham for dinner because they know this ham and potato soup will be coming after. Thick and creamy, but gluten free, the broth is thickened with a hidden veggie – cauliflower! The recipe does have a bit of milk, sour cream, and cheese, but if you are looking for dairy free as well, the cauliflower-thickened soup is still really creamy and delicious before we even add the dairy components.

Full disclosure, this recipe makes A LOT of soup… my soup pot holds about one and half gallons, although I try not to fill it over a gallon. We will eat this for a meal and then pack up about 2 quarts of leftovers. And there is a lot of vegetable chopping, I always underestimate how long it takes to chop vegetables. I’m picky about my veggies being diced small and I’m no Master Chef, so it takes me a while. But being able to quickly warm up leftovers of this yummy soup later in the week makes all of the vegetable chopping worth it!

The first thing to do is make a bone-in ham for dinner, eat it, and save about 2 cups worth of meat and the bone. You can toss these in a freezer bag and freeze them for later, or keep for about a week in the fridge. I do not glaze my hams. I just don’t think they need it. A good bone-in ham will have a nice thick layer of fat and skin on the top that will render/melt and baste the whole chunk of meat while it bakes in the oven. It’s a perfect meal for entertaining, practically zero prep work – open the package, stick it in a casserole dish, cover with foil, and toss it in the oven for a few hours while you get other things ready!

So you have your ham bone and you are ready to make soup…. Fill a large soup pot with about 3 quarts of water, add the ham bone, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-high and let it simmer away for about an hour while you prep the veggies. Chop onions, garlic, celery, and carrots first so that they are ready for the next step. I aim for the vegetables to be about half-in cubes – I picture the equivalent of 2 or three corn kernels because I like to have a bit of everything in each bite (and I think my kids appreciate that too). Dice the potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes and set aside in a large bowl. Chop the cauliflower into medium pieces and set aside (these will get pureed so size isn’t as important).

After the ham stock has been simmering for at least 45 minutes, melt about a tablespoon of butter in a smaller pot and saute onions on medium-low to medium heat until they soften. Add the garlic, then the celery and carrots and saute until the celery is softened, add a bit more butter if needed.

Remove the ham bone from the soup pot and discard. Scoop about 2 cups of the ham stock from the pot, then add the sauteed veggies to the big soup pot. Place the cauliflower and about half of the potatoes into the smaller pot and put the rest of the potatoes into the large soup pot with the other veggies. Continue simmering the soup pot on medium-low heat. Pour the 2 cups of ham stock over the cauliflower and half of the potatoes. Cover and simmer until potatoes and cauliflower are softened and easily mashed with a fork. *I happen to be using a bag of frozen, riced cauliflower here because none of the fresh cauliflower looked very nice at the store.

While the potatoes and cauliflower simmer, cut the ham into half inch cubes and chop the broccoli crowns and stems into small pieces. The key to using broccoli stems is to cut away the tough outer skin with a knife or a vegetable peeler. The inside of a broccoli stalk is actually crisp and juicy. This particular broccoli had a very prominent, almost woody outside layer that can be easily seen in the photos below. My peeler couldn’t get through it which is unusual, I had to use a knife, but it was worth it for the goodness that lies inside. Like the ham bone, I saved a few broccoli stalks from dinner a few nights before because I knew I’d be making this soup and I wanted some extra broccoli without too much of the easily visible crowns floating around in the soup – the more homogeneous the vegetables, the less my kids notice what’s actually in there.

Once the potatoes and cauliflower have fully softened, transfer to a blender or food processor. Add the cup of milk (or a bit of water as needed if making dairy free) and blend until smooth.

Add the broccoli and ham to the soup pot and simmer for a few minutes until the broccoli is bright green and tender-crisp. Pour the potato-cauliflower puree into the soup pot and stir to combine.

Drain the liquid from the canned corn and add to the soup. If you are making dairy free soup, add salt and pepper to taste and it is done! If not, add the sour cream and cheese, turn off the heat and stir for about a minute until the cheese is melted. Salt and pepper to taste and enjoy!