This one-pot ham and penne is the best way to use up leftovers

Emily Monaco

Contributing Writer

When facing off with a leftover spiral ham from Christmas or Easter, you can only eat ham sandwiches for so long before you want something new and exciting. That's where the recipe below comes in. Toss leftover chunks of cooked ham with penne pasta, two kinds of cheese, peas and a touch of mustard. Leftovers have never been so delicious!

Of course, if you get a hankering for this pasta dish when there's no leftover ham in sight, that's possible too. Just be sure to choose high-quality ham from the deli counter, and get it thickly sliced so that hearty cubes will be present throughout the dish.

Cooktop Cove

Penne with ham

5 minutes

20 minutes

25 minutes

1 pound penne pasta

1 tablespoon salt

2 tablespoons butter

1 pound leftover cooked ham, diced

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 cup frozen peas

1 cup shredded Swiss cheese

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Boil water with salt. Cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain out the pasta water, and return pasta to the pot.

Add the butter, ham, mustard and peas. Stir to combine, until all the butter is melted, and the mustard is completely incorporated.

Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the shredded Swiss and grated Parmesan cheeses until melted.

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