A warming winter soup, packed with delicious vegetables and ham, this is a paleo friendly recipe that’s perfect for a chilly evening.
This is one of those recipes where I really didn’t feel like cooking the meal I had planned, and I was too lazy to go to the grocery store, so I scrounged through my kitchen and threw a bunch of stuff into a pot, and voila, soup! 
Just be sure to rinse them well because they tend to be sandy. After I trim off the white root, the green ends, and then chop them, I stir them around in a bowl full of water and let them sit for a while.
When I’m ready to use them, I fish the chopped leeks out, being careful to not disturb the sand that had dropped to the bottom of the bowl.
I used leftover ham that I had in my freezer.
In the past, I would have made ham and bean soup, but I avoid beans these days. In addition to the whole “musical fruit” thing, they really don’t agree with me, and they are certainly not part of any ancestral diet. It turns out, that I like Ham and Sweet Potato Soup even better.
I have made this recipe twice, the first time I used sweet Hannah sweet potatoes, which have white flesh. This soup freezes beautifully, so it is also a wonderful make-ahead meal.
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Fall Ham and Sweet Potato Soup
- Yield: 10 cups 1x
Description
A warming winter soup, packed with delicious vegetables and ham, this is a paleo friendly recipe that's perfect for a chilly evening.
Ingredients
- 4 cups chopped cooked ham (trimmed of excess fat)
- 2 ½ cups chopped celery
- 2 cups chopped carrots (about 5 carrots)
- 4 cups leeks chopped (about 2 leeks)
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 8 cups of low sodium chicken stock (two 32 oz boxes)
- 2 cups water
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 cups peeled and diced potato (about 1 medium sweet potato)
- chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley for garnish
Instructions
- In a large pot over medium heat, saute the ham until it begins to brown and release some fat and moisture into the pan, about three minutes.
- Add the carrots and celery and saute until they begin to soften, about four minutes.
- Add the leeks and saute until they begin to soften, about two minutes.
- Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about one minute.
- Add the chicken stock, water, thyme, bay leaves, and ground black pepper. Stir, raise heat to high and boil.
- Lower heat and simmer mixture, uncovered for 50 minutes.
- Add sweet potatoes, raise heat and bring to a boil. Lower heat to simmer and cook until sweet potatoes can be pierced easily with a fork 15-20 minutes.
- Garnish with chopped parsley and serve!
- Category: Appetizer, fall food, Main Course, Soup
- Cuisine: American, American-Italian
