Kiss the Cook: Give leftover ham a tasty makeover

“Leftovers” is a dirty word to some, but to many of us, it’s a wise use of extra food.

When you cook a lot, leftovers will happen. Finding a recipe and use for those extras is not only good for the food budget, but can be great tasting.

The recipe below is geared towards using leftover ham, but you obviously do not have to use leftovers.

I usually make my ham salad with sweet pickle relish. I have taken feedback from multiple taste testers and found that a sweeter ham salad is preferred. The recipe below is made with dill pickle relish and not quite as sweet. If you prefer it on the sweet side, you can make this same ham salad using sweet pickle relish.

This ham salad is quite different for me, but I do think it’s a good non-traditional ham salad recipe.

The use of dried minced onions and coarse Dijon mustard creates a unique flavor.

HAM SALAD

Prep Time: 15 minutes Ready in: 2 hrs. 15 minutes

Ingredients: 1 ½ lbs. cooked smoked ham, chopped ½ c. light sour cream ¼ c. mayonnaise (I used Hellman’s Olive Oil Mayo) ½ tsp. white pepper 1/3 c. dried minced onions ¼ c. dark coarse ground Dijon mustard 1/3 c. dill pickle relish (or sweet relish if you prefer it more sweet) Directions: 1. Finely chopped the ham in a food processor. Do not overly process the ham, 7-10 pulses may be enough to finely chop the ham. Once it is chopped, remove and place in a large bowl.

2. Add the sour cream, mayo, white pepper, Dijon mustard, minced onions, dill pickle relish and mix well. Place in the refrigerator for a couple of hours. The minced onions will absorb some of the moisture from the ham salad.