Christmas dinner.....need help.

RubyTuesday

Does anyone have an easy delicious ham recipe for Christmas dinner?

xenawarrior

Here ya go sweetie!!! You may not like her but she's got some of the best recipes around- good ole Martha Stewart:

Glazed Ham

Serves 16 to 50

A ham this size can serve sixteen people for dinner and up to fifty for hors d'oeuvres. For step-by-step photos and other useful cooking information, see our Ham 101 feature.

1		fourteen-to-eighteen-pound whole smoked ham, bone in and rind on
1		cup apple cider
1/4		cup yellow mustard seeds
2		tablespoons whole cardamom pods
1		tablespoon whole fennel seeds
2		teaspoons ground cinnamon
1		tablespoon ground ginger
3/4		cup prepared mustard
1		cup plus 2 tablespoons light-brown sugar
3/4		cup dark-brown sugar
3		tablespoons light corn syrup
2		tablespoons unsulfured molasses
2 to 3		tablespoons whole cloves
4		fresh bay leaves(optional)

		1. Rinse ham with cool water, and dry with paper towels. Let stand for 2 hours at room temperature. Place rack on lowest level in oven; heat oven to 250. Line a roasting pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Place a roasting rack in the pan. Transfer ham, with the thicker rind on top, to rack. Pour 1/2 cup apple cider over ham. Cook for 2 hours or until an instant-read thermometer registers 140.

		2. Meanwhile, combine mustard seeds, cardamom, and fennel in a small heavy skillet; place over medium-low heat, and toast seeds, shaking pan, for 3 to 4 minutes, until aromatic. Transfer to a spice mill or mortar and pestle, and grind just until cardamom is broken up. Transfer spice mixture to a medium bowl. Add cinnamon, ginger, mustard, 2 tablespoons light-brown sugar, 2 tablespoons dark-brown sugar, corn syrup, molasses, and remaining 1/2 cup apple cider. Combine well; set aside.

		3. Remove ham from oven, and let it cool for about 30 minutes. Using kitchen shears or a sharp knife, trim away the hard rind from the ham. Use a sharp knife to trim fat to a layer of about 1/4 inch all over the ham; it does not need to be perfectly even. The bottom side of the ham will have less fat and more skin. Place ham bottom side down. Score the remaining fat on top of the ham into a pattern of 1- to 2-inch diamonds, cutting about 1/4 to 1/2 inch through the fat and into the meat.

		4. Insert a whole clove into the intersection of each diamond. Using a pastry brush or your fingers, rub the spice glaze all over the ham and deep into the cut diamonds. In a medium bowl combine remaining cup light-brown sugar and 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark-brown sugar. Using your fingers, gently pack sugar mixture all over scored fat. If using bay leaves, secure them with toothpick halves around the shank bone. Cover the toothpicks by inserting cloves on top of them. Return ham to oven and cook for 20 minutes. Sugar will begin to crystallize but there will be some hard spots of sugar; gently baste these areas with remaining glaze. Cook 40 minutes more, basting with remaining glaze after 20 minutes; do not baste with any pan juices. The ham should be dark brown and crusty; cook 15 minutes more if necessary. Remove and let cool slightly. Transfer to a serving platter, and let stand 30 minutes before carving.

Nickey

My fav is eating ham with sweet potatoes. Dipping it in the sweet potato glaze...

Aztec

Hey Ruby,

I make mine real simple:

I ham

I stick of butter (not margarine)

enough brown sugar to melt in butter and be kinda thick

lots of cloves (the more the better)

pinapple rings

optional: those weird cherries

melt butter, add brown sugar, pour on ham, put pineapple rings all over and secure with gobs of cloves, bake at around 365 until it looks done and is kinda brown, eat, say YUM!

~Aztec

My wife has a fantastic ham recipe. The ham will just melt in your mouth. In fact I bought a ham at the store today and she's going to cook it for us tomorrow. I'll get her to post it here tomorrow if you want.

xenawarrior

LOLOL- the bottom part of my post didn't actually post- it was a joke- nothing Martha makes is simple!!!

I know I don't have a mortar and pestle in my kitchen and I have no idea what cardamom pods are.

XW

RubyTuesday

LOL Xena....You lost me after 1/4 cup of mustard seed.

Heck I don't know what a mortar and pestle is.

Aztec...now that is my kind of recipe...I think I can handle that one.(no weird cherries for me tho)

Big Tex...yummm...please do post your wifes recipe.

any suggestions for desert?

Thanks everyone

Edited by - rubytuesday on 24 December 2002 2:23:34

DakotaRed

Every year, the company gives each of us a honey ham, pre-cooked and sliced, I warm it up and serve it with ham glaze bought at any grocery store. I either have sweet potatos with it or mashed potatos, gravy and a vegetable. Heat the ham and let the guest spoon whatever glaze they wish on it, what's simpler?

Of course, I always save enough to cook a big pot of black eyed peas.

Lew W

out4good3

two words

Honeybaked Spiral-sliced....

I think you have to order in advance thoufh

Aztec

Hee hee! Dessert: store bought cherry pie and vanilla ice cream? Gotta get those cherries in there somewhere right?

~Aztec

Christmas dinner.....need help.

Share this