Ham-Cauli Soup with Corn and Potatoes

The Occasion: Had a delicious ham and bean soup at a local bakery over the weekend and was inspired to cook some type of ham soup. Also, found cauliflower for sale at Redner's. $2.98 for the whole head.

The Recipe: Invented.

How it Went: Husband called this "phenomenal." So, I'd say it was a success.

What You Need:
Ham
Water
Bay Leaves
Cauliflower
Potatoes
Broth
Milk
Salt
Pepper
Frozen Corn
Provolone Cheese
French Fried Onions

Your Turn:
Wrap a smoked boneless ham in aluminum foil.

Place in a crock pot. Pour about half a cup of water over the ham. Toss in a few bay leaves.

Let it cook about eight hours on low.

Chop up one whole head of cauliflower and about three medium sized yellow potatoes.

Fill a large soup pot with the cauli and potatoes. Add about four cups of vegetable or chicken broth. Then remove the ham from the crock pot and dump into the soup pot the water from the crock pot. If the vegetables aren't covered, add a little more water til it nearly covers them.

Bring to a boil, and then simmer for 15-20 minutes until soft.

In the meantime, shred the ham with two forks.

When the cauli and potatoes are tender, add the ham. It will add up to about four cups of shredded ham. Add half a teaspoon of salt and about half a teaspoon of pepper.

Whisk 1 C milk with 1 T flour and pour into soup. Dump in half a bag of frozen corn, stir, and let simmer another 15-20 minutes. Taste and add more salt and pepper as needed.

Now, the key is the toppings. And like on the Penne with Basil Rosa Sauce and Bacon, it was Husband who discovered the secret ingredient that makes this recipe fabulous. The soup must be topped with a slice of provolone cheese and french fried onions.

Trust me. This is the key to this unique soup.

Enjoy for days... this recipe makes about five quarts of soup.