Cooking Your Holiday Ham

Posted by Hanna Trafford in Recipes on December 21, 2009 | no responses

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About the Author: Hanna is the mother of two grown sons Dan and Dusan Nedelko, Step mother to Abbie Gateman and is also a brand new Grandmother. She is the lead editor of Mama Knows and is hoping to create an exchange of communications with other grandmothers, mothers and daughters - giving everyone the opportunity to learn and share about everything that is "Mama"

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Ham is definitely one of the staple items in a traditional festive holiday meal. And there are a good number of ways you can cook it – but you could have a little dilemma just how to cook it to make it special. Personally, I prefer to glaze the ham with fruity and sweet glaze, I find that it enhances the smoked flavour very nicely.I have included recipes here for you to be able to choose one that will most appeal to your taste – enjoy !

Ham with Pineapple

Ingredients

1 (12 pound) bone-in ham
1/2 cup of whole cloves
1/2 cup of packed brown sugar
1 (20 ounce) can of pineapple rings in heavy syrup
1 (4 ounce) jar of chopped maraschino cherries
1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle of lemon-lime flavoured carbonated beverage

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F
Place ham in a roasting pan.
Score the rind of the ham with a diamond pattern.
Press a clove into the center of each diamond.
Drain the juice from the pineapple rings into a medium bowl, and stir in the brown sugar and lemon-lime soda.
Coat the ham with this mixture.
Arrange the pineapple rings over the outside of the ham.
Place a maraschino cherry in the center of each pineapple ring, and secure with a toothpick.
Bake uncovered for 4 to 5 hours, basting frequently with the juices, until the internal temperature of the ham is 160 degrees F. Be sure the meat thermometer is not touching the bone.
Remove toothpicks before serving.

Honey Glazed Ham

Ingredients

1 (5 pound) ready-to-eat ham
1/4 cup of whole cloves
1/4 cup of dark corn syrup
2 cups of honey
2/3 cup of butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F
Score ham, and stud with the whole cloves.
Place ham in foil lined pan.
In the top half of a double boiler, heat the corn syrup, honey and butter. Keep glaze warm while baking ham.
Brush glaze over ham, and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes in the preheated oven.
Baste ham every 10 to 15 minutes with the honey glaze.
During the last 4 to 5 minutes of baking, turn on broiler to caramelize the glaze.
Remove from oven, and let sit a few minutes before serving.

Sugar Glazed Ham

Ingredients

1 (12 pound) ham ,rump portion
1/2 cup of whole cloves
1 cup of packed brown sugar
4 cups of water, or as needed

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Place ham in a roasting pan, and press whole cloves into the top at 1 to 2 inch intervals.
Pack the top with a layer of brown sugar.
Pour enough water into the bottom of the roasting pan to come to a 1 inch depth.
Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil or a lid.
Bake for 4 1/2 to 5 hours in the preheated oven (about 22 minutes per pound), or until the internal temperature of the ham has reached 160 degrees .
Make sure the meat thermometer is not touching the bone.
Let stand for about 20 minutes before carving.

Cherry Glazed Ham

Cherry Glazed Ham

Ingredients

1 (10 pound) fully cooked whole ham
1 cup of cherry preserve
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons of light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves
1/3 cup of toasted slivered almonds
3 tablespoons of water

Directions

Heat oven to 325 degrees F.
Place ham on a rack in a shallow baking pan.
Bake, uncovered, in a 325 degrees F oven about 1-1/2 hours (or until thermometer registers 140 degrees F).
Meanwhile, in a saucepan combine the cherry preserves, vinegar, corn syrup, and spices.
Cook and stir until boiling.
Reduce heat; simmer two minutes.
Stir in almonds.
Remove from heat.
Put 3/4 cup of the glaze to the side.
About 15 minutes before the ham is done, spoon some of the remaining glaze over the ham, basting occasionally.
Remove from oven; place on a heated serving platter.
Stir the water into the reserved 3/4-cup glaze; heat and serve along with the ham.

Hope you enjoy having these recipes – please send in your comments, suggestions and experiences – your input is always welcomed and very much appreciated!