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Cloudy days and rain predicted over the next week stretch out the soup season. If you had a nice bone-in ham for Easter dinner, the bone would make savory ham and bean soup. Choose your favorite tomato or broth-based recipe, or use this recipe for Super Bean Soup, which can be made either way.

Super Bean Soup

1 meaty ham bone

1 1/2 cups mixed dried beans

Water to cover beans

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cups tomato juice, diced or chopped, or 3 cups water or ham broth from a roasting pan

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 tsp sugar

Salt and pepper to taste

Optional: 1/4 tsp red pepper and1/2 tsp chili powder

Soak beans in cold water overnight, drain and rinse. Place drained beans in a 6-quart kettle, along with ham bone. Add water to 1 inch above the beans. Cook over medium heat until beans begin to simmer. Reduce heat slightly to maintain a gentle simmer. Cover and cook for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

Remove the ham bone, pick any remaining meat bits from the bone, and return to the kettle.

Add remaining ingredients and simmer 30 minutes longer. Yield: 4-6 servings.

Note: I often add 2 cups of diced carrots to this recipe when making the non-tomato version.

Ham and Cheese Salad, a recipe from the Odessa Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, Staff of Life II Cookbook, attributed to Lorraine Witt Sanders, includes many ingredients one might have left over from holiday meals. Serve as a side salad or with tortilla chips.

Ham and Cheese Salad

1 cup cubed, cooked ham

1/4 cup sliced black olives

1/2 cup cubed cheese

1/2 cup sliced green onions

1 can (15 ounces) kernel corn, well-drained

1/2 cup pimento, drained

1 cup diced green pepper

1/2 cup bottled Italian dressing

Combine all ingredients and season with salt and pepper. Chill for at least one hour to develop flavors. Serve as a side salad or dip with tortilla chips—yield: 6 servings.

Note: red, yellow, or orange sweet peppers may be substituted in this recipe. Honey mustard or creamy Italian dressings are also good choices. Another serving suggestion is to spoon the salad mixture onto salad plates lined with chopped salad greens.

Potato Soup is a plain soup that is often appealing to kids. The following recipe for Patricia Hrab’s Potato Soup is a version I found in the Colville Lutheran Church Cookbook. This recipe features the inclusion of leeks and sauerkraut. The original recipe used the sauerkraut as a garnish, but I stirred it into the soup just before serving.

Patricia Hrab’s

Potato Soup

5-6 medium-sized russet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-size pieces

Three leeks, cleaned and sliced into 1/4-inch thick rings

1 onion, chopped

1 large carrot, shredded

Three stalks of celery, chopped

5-6 cups of chicken or vegetable broth

1/3 cup butter

8 ounces cubed ham or 8 ounces lean bacon

4-6 ounces of sour cream

1 Tbsp parsley flakes

2 tsp salt

1 tsp ground black pepper

Chopped green chives (garnish)

1-2 cups rinsed, drained and chopped sauerkraut (garnish or stirred in)

In a large skillet, sauté in butter (or 5 Tbsp bacon drippings if using bacon instead of ham): ham, leeks, carrot, onion, and celery.

Add broth, sautéed vegetables, seasonings, parsley flakes and potatoes to a large soup kettle. Let cook over medium heat for 30-40 minutes.

After cooking, gently mash some potatoes, leaving some whole for structure. Stir in the vegetable mixture. With a large wire whisk, gently stir in sour cream, heating until hot. Do not boil. I add the sauerkraut at this time.

When heated through, ladle into bowls and garnish with chopped chives and sauerkraut if you use it as garnish. Yield: 6 to 8 servings.

Note: leeks can be sandy between the leaves, so wash carefully. I usually slice them in half lengthwise to tell if all the sand is removed. Also, 2-3 Tbsp fresh parsley may be substituted for the 1 Tbsp dried—this recipe.

Sometime during the summer months, most years, I have included the recipe for a zucchini soup base I make and freeze to use as the start of my winter soups. Salmon chowder of all varieties is a favorite at our house and I recently used the soup base to make a chowder.

Zucchini Salmon Chowder

2 cups of the chicken zucchini soup base

2 cups water, plus more to thin soup if needed

1 pound poached salmon, skinned and boned, or 1 can (15 ounces) salmon

1 1/2 cups instant/dried potato

1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning

1 tsp Herb and Garlic seasoning

1 can of evaporated milk

1 can (15 ounces) kernel corn, including liquid

Heat soup base and water to boiling in a large soup kettle. Add instant or dried potato.

When thickened, stir in seasonings and corn. Simmer gently for 5-10 minutes.

Add salmon and milk and simmer until heated through. Serve immediately. Yield: 4-6 servings.

Can you believe it! I’m going into the 20th year of writing this column. It would be fun to share recipes you gleaned from the queue that have become family favorites. This should be easy, all you need to do is send me the recipe name and I can look it up and reprint your choices throughout this year. I am also interested in any changes or variations you have made to adapt to your family’s tastes.

We are always searching for new recipes to include in the column, so please share new family favorites as well.

Please send them to: Welcome to My Kitchen, c/o The Record Times, P.O. Box 458, Odessa, WA 99159, email therecord@odessaoffice.com or drop them in the Welcome to My Kitchen mail tine in The Odessa Record office. Follow our Welcome to My Kitchen Facebook page for recipe photos, tips, and hints I need more space for in the column. You may also comment on your favorite recipe there. Pull early emerging weeds to get a head start on garden weed control.