Pea & Ham Soup

Serves: 3 to 4 (3 filling lunch portions or 4 starters)
Prep time: 5 minutes (depending on how far away your fridge / freezer is)
Cooking time: about 10 minutes
Skill level: Pea & Ham-fisted
Equipment: Measuring jug; Saucepan; Blender; Spoons; Dishes; Chopping board; Kitchen knife

Following on from cooking gammon in snakebite, the flavoursome cooking liquor is perfect for making pea and ham soup.  It is so quick and easy, seeing as the stock is so full of flavour and peas cook so quickly.

Ingredients

500ml Gammon cooking liquor
600g Frozen peas
10ml Corn flour
300g or so of Cooked gammon

Method

If you made the gammon in snakebite the night before, the cooled cooking liquor will have jellified in the fridge, but you should still be able to splodge some into a measuring jug (after having spooned-off the solidified fat on the surface) to measure 500ml before walloping it into a saucepan.

Bring to the boil before adding the frozen peas and when it all comes back to the boil, cook for 4 to 5 minutes.

Blitz the soup with what ever blender you have, being careful not to splatter yourself and kitchen with boiling hot soup.  I you didn't blend the soup in the saucepan, return it to the pan.  Slake (wet) the cornflour with a little cold water in a small dish to get a pourable liquid rather than a paste when stirred.  If you have created a non-Newtonian, dilatant fluid then - firstly - well done you for paying attention in science class but stop basking in the glory of knowing long words and add some more water to the cornflour paste.
Pour the cornflour solution into the soup and bring to a simmer, stirring until the soup thickens up.

Dice the cooked gammon, then scatter into the soup to heat it through before serving.

Serve with a few nice, hot, home made rolls with butter (rolls made with half wholemeal and half strong white flour work a treat)