White Bean and Lamb Soup

I found this recipe for White Bean and Lamb Soup that I have been meaning to try.  I have made a barley and lamb soup before that I liked, but I just wanted something a little different this time.   With my leg of lamb leftovers, this is exactly what I did.  (Remember that post?  I have had a super busy spring and this is the first time I have gotten a chance to post in over a month!) It was great and I think that it will probably be my top choice for lamb leftovers from now on.

I did, of course, make several changes to the recipe, mainly eliminating things because I didn't have them.  I first used the bone (with any meat that didn't come right off) for a stock.  I simmered it for a few hours.  You could do this in a crock pot and just leave it overnight, then take out the bone and throw in the rest of the ingredients in the morning - leave it to simmer all day and ta-da!

So - instead of chicken broth - I just used the lamb stock.  And I used the leftover meat from the leg of lamb rather than ground lamb.  I also replaced the vegetable that they suggest with the leftover vegetables that I had cooked with the leg.  I didn't have any spinach, feta cheese or tomatoes, so I skipped those, but I did add some celery and some more carrots.  All in all - yummy!  Soups are so forgiving.  I improvise with them all of the time.  If you don't like an ingredient - replace it with one you do like.  Just try and replace veggies with veggies etc. at first until you get the hang of substitutions and additions.  Happy cooking!