Ham and Potato Soup

This is a thick soup, which is great for a cold winter day.

Ingredients:
6 medium (or 8 small) raw potatoes, peeled and diced
4 cups of PORK broth
4 green onions, diced
1 cup of cooked ham, diced
2 cups of half and half
5Tbsp Butter
4Tbsp corn starch

Optional:
Shredded Cheese
Fried Bacon

1. Place diced potatoes into crockpot with pork broth. Set on HIGH and cook for 2 hours and 30 minutes.


2. During this time, you can cook the bacon and set to the side if you are going to use it as a garnish.

3. Cook your ham and dice into small cubes. I use a "ham steak" from Smithfield. I cook it on the stove, 5 minutes each side.


4. Melt 5Tbsps of Butter in a saucepan, adding the 4Tbsps of corn starch slowly and whisking together.


5. Mix in the half and half, 1 cup at a time. Pour into soup.


6. Turn the crockpot down to medium

7. Chop green onion. Add it and ham to soup.


8. Cover and cook an additional 30 minutes

10. Serve soup into bowl. If you would like, garnish the soup with shredded cheese and crumple the cooked bacon on top.

Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients:

Pork Tenderloin
Box of Stuffing (or make your own, I love Stove Top Pork Stuffing!)
Small Onion
2Tbsp Olive Oil
Garlic Powder
Pepper
Rosemary

1. Make your stuffing according to the recipe, this is the box that I use (it takes my will power not to eat it!)


2. Cut onion in to small pieces, saute with 1Tbsp olive oil, and mix with prepared stuffing. Set to side


3. Cut as much fat as you can from the tenderloin, then dry the tenderloin so you start to cut it so that it lays flat, like it has been rolled out. As you are cutting it, try to make sure to keep it one inch thick, all the way around.





4. Take your stuffing, and form into into a flat square, keeping about .5-1 inch from the sides.


5. Roll the pork tenderloin, keeping stuffing inside.



6. Use bakers twine (string) to hold the roll in place.


7. With 1Tbsp olive oil, sear the pork on all sides. As you are doing this, sprinkle the meat with the garlic powder, pepper, and rosemary for taste. The place the roll into a shallow baking dish. I line mine with tinfoil, less clean up.


8. Place in oven on 350 degrees for 45minutes to an hour, or until meat reaches an internal temperature of 175-180. Do not cook under, as it's dangerous, and do not cook over, as it will dry out your meat.

9. Once the temperature has been reached, take out and let "sit" for 10 minutes so that the juices settle. Once this is done,cut the strings off and you can slice into medallions to serve for dinner!


(see the juices? So yummy!)

This meal is really simple. And the flavor is WONDERFUL!

New England Clam Chowder

Ingredients

1tsp Cliff House Spice Blend
6 Slices raw bacon, fat removed
6 med. potatoes, cubed
3 green onions and shallots (scallions),chopped
2 10oz cans of Baby whole clams
2 6.5oz cans of minced clams
1 cup of water
4 cups Heavy Cream
4Tbsp Corn Starch
1Tbsp olive oil for sauteing

Optional: Oyster Crackers

1. Cut the potatoes into small bite sized cubes and add to crock pot


2. Add 1 cup of water to crock pot

3. Drain all clams, saving the juice. Add juice to crock pot, set clams to the side

4. tear or chop bacon into small bites, making sure to take off the fat

5. Chop up scallions

6. Saute Bacon and scallions together until bacon is dark pink, add to crock pot


7. Set on crock pot on HIGH heat for 2 hour and 30 minutes, or until potatoes feel tender. Make sure to cover and stir occasionally

8. Whisk together Heavy Cream, corn starch, and cliff house spice blend over medium heat until well blended. Pour into crock pot.

9. Add clams to crock pot, stirring into chowder.

10. Cook for 1 final hour, and serve immediately!

Cliff House Spice Blend

This will be used in future chowder and soup recipes!

4tsp Oregano
4tsp Parsley, dried
2tsp marjoram
4tsp thyme
1tsp Sage
4tsp Rosemary
2tsp Tarragon
1Tbsp AP Flour

Store in container or plastic baggie in fridge