Ham and Cheese Casserole

Ham is a go-to in our house! We have one very picky eater but ham is a winner every time! After a few days, like anything else, ham can get boring so using a minimum of 2 cups diced ham you can create this deliciously cheesy leftover ham casserole – even on a busy evening!

What’s great about casserole, these recipes are so easily adaptable for larger families! A lot of times I will just add a little extra pasta, grab a larger dish and voila! – you’ve got yourself a couple of extra servings!

You can use any type of short-cut pasta for this dish: I rotate with whatever is on hand between rotini, penne or macaroni noodles for my casseroles!

Cheese is another loose ingredient – you can never have too much! Feel free to add more at the end as I’m sure we do. 🙂

Still, have ham leftover? Try another of our favourites – Leftover Ham and Cheddar Scalloped Potatoes!

Prep Time	30 minutes
Cooking Time	25 minutes
Servings:	6

Ingredients

• 8 ounces rotini pasta
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup cream, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 1/2 cups leftover diced ham
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar, divided
• 2 scallions (or green onions), sliced
• Dash of Paprika (optional)

Sauce substitution: Instead of making your own cream sauce, you can use 1 can of condensed cream of cheddar soup. To do this, omit steps 3 and 4 and all ingredients listed from flour ending with garlic powder. Just use one can!

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375, and lightly grease an 8×8″ oven-safe dish.
2. Cook the rotini pasta just until al dente – about 1-2 minutes less than the package directions. Drain and set aside.
3. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour, and cook for 1 minute until homogenous. Whisk constantly.
4. Next, pour the milk and 1/4 cup of the cream, add salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Lower the heat and cook while stirring occasionally until slightly thickened. This should take about 5-8 minutes, and the mixture will coat the back of a spoon when it properly thickens.
5. In a large bowl, combine the cooked pasta, cream sauce, sour cream, 1 cup of the grated cheddar, ham and the sliced scallions. Stir well to combine.
6. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Top with the remaining 1/2 cup of grated cheese. Drizzle the remaining 1/4 cup of heavy cream evenly over the mixture. Sprinkle lightly with paprika if desired.
7. Cover with foil, and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake uncovered for 5 minutes to slightly crisp up the cheese on top.
8. Let stand for 5 minutes before scooping and serving.

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originally found on Dessert for two