Cook Once, Eat Three Times - Ham Dinner to Brilliant Breakfast Quiche to Pea Soup

Here's a time-saving suppertime strategy. "Most people get the idea of 'cook once, eat twice.' For the busy modern mom, that's not enough. To make the most out of the time you're spending in the kitchen, choose a make once, eat THRICE option - for that, there's nothing like ham," "Retro Expert" Darla Shine says.

Baked Ham Dinner can become a Brilliant Breakfast Quiche and a classic Pea Soup with Shine's recipe. If that's not enough, she also recommends doubling a recipe - like her Grilled Cheese Casserole, which takes all the favorites of a traditional, gooey grilled cheese sandwich, combines them with diced pork tenderloin for a one-pot hot casserole creation - so you can have enough for a second meal later in a super-busy week.

Ham

1 6-8 pound fully-cooked, bone-in ham
6 garlic cloves, peeled
1 large onion, halved and slice 3/8 inch thick
4 celery stalks, sliced into 2-inch pieces
2 Granny Smith apples, cored and sliced
6 carrots, cut into 2-inch pieces and halved lengthwise
3 fresh rosemary swigs
1/2 cup fresh parsley
1/2 lemon, juice
1 tablespon olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper

Quiche

2 cups leftover ham (from above recipe), cut into 1/2 -inch cubes
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups half and half
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup white onion, chopped
2 cups fresh broccoli florets, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 8-ounce frozen deep-dish pie shells, thawed
Freshly ground black pepper

Pea Soup

1 leftover ham bone
2 cups 3/4-inch cubed leftover ham (about 10 ounces)
2 1/4 cup dry green split peas (1 pound)
6 cups of water
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 celery stalks, sliced
1 white onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 to 4 cups of chicken broth
3 medium carrots, thinly sliced
2 medium white potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 large bay leaf
1 cup herb seasoned croutons
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

To make the ham:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Place ham, faced down, on rack in shallow baking pan. Make 6 small slits in surface of ham; push a garlic clove into each slit.

Place carrots, celery, apples, onion, parsley and rosemary around ham in pan. Pour lemon juice over vegetables. Drizzle and rub olive oil over surface of ham. Lightly sprinkle ham with black pepper. Cover pan tightly with heavy foil.

Bake in heated oven for 1 3/4-3 1/2 hours or until an instant read thermometer instered in thickest portion (not touching bone) register 140 degrees F (about 25 minutes per pound).

Transfer ham to carving board; discard vegetables. Loosely cover ham with foil. Let rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing.

Place leftover ham and bone in a tightly covered container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Use for breakfast quiche and pea soup.

Makes 16 servings.

Nutritional Information per Serving: Calories: 360 Fat: 24g Saturated Fat: 8g Cholesterol: 110mg Sodium: 1870mg Carbohydrates: 8g Protein: 30g

To make the quiche:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, mix eggs, half and half, cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese and kosher salt. Set aside.

Heat olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add broccoli and onion. Cook over medium heat for five minutes, stirring occasinally.

Add the diced ham and remaining 1 tablespoon of butter to the onion and broccoli mixture. Cook for about 3 more minutes.

Spoon ham-vegetable mixture evenly in the 2 pie shells. Pour egg mixture evenly over ham-vegetable mixture. Lightly sprinkle tops of quiches with pepper.

Bake in preheated oven for 35 minutes. Transfer quickes to cooling rack; let cool about 15 minutes before serving.

Makes 2 quiches, 6 servings each.

Nutritional Information per Serving: Calories: 270 Fat: 18g Saturated Fat: 8g Cholesterol: 115mg Sodium: 420mg Carbohydrates: 14g Protein: 13g

To make the pea soup:

Sort and thoroughly rinse split peas in colander under cold running water. Place peas in stock pot or 4-or 6-quart Dutch oven. Add ham bone and 6 cups of water. Bring to boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté celery, onions, garlic. Cook over medium heat for 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add celery mixture to pea mixture in soup pot. Stir in 3 cups chicken broth, carrots, potatoes, salt and bay leaf. Bring to boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 30-40 minutes or until peas are very soft and break apart when mixture is briskly stirred. Stir in ham the last 5 minutes of cooking.

Remove ham bone from soup and remove any meat from bone and return the meat to the soup mixture. Discard bone. Remove and discard bay leaf. Briskly stir soup mixture with wooden spoon to break up peas. If necessary, stir in enough of the remaining 1 cup chicken broth to make soup of desired consistency. Season to taste with pepper.

To serve, ladle soup into bowls. Top each with a few croutons and sprinkle with parsley.

For thinner soup an additional 1 cup of chicken broth 10 minutes before serving.

Makes 8 servings.

Nutritional Information per Serving: Calories: 390 Fat: 10g Saturated Fat: 2.5g Cholesterol: 35mg Sodium: 410mg Carbohydrates: 50g Protein: 28g