Ham

Some people have commented on how many kitchen tools I have and wonder if there are any I don’t have! I’m sure there are many more that I could still purchase and many more that haven’t even been invented yet, that I just might have to have when they come out..... in any case that got me thinking about a method where I could use them more often.
The Food Channel has a program where the contestants are given certain ingredients and are challenged to come up with an item or meal created from those ingredients. I thought I would go to my cupboards and pull of at least three kitchen tools that I hadn’t used recently and create a meal from them.

For today’s lunch I decided to use my waffle iron, microwave potato chip maker and electric steamer. With the waffle iron I am making a grilled cheese sandwich made out of home-made bread and cheddar cheese; the microwave potato chip maker is from Pampered Chef, but I have seen them in the past down at Forsyth Hardware and I just use Idaho potatoes and with the electric steaming I am steaming fresh carrots.

Another use for the waffle iron is to make “French Waffles.” My granddaughter came up with that name one time when she was here because I was in the middle of making French Toast for her and was interrupted after I had put the bread in the egg mixture and when I returned to the kitchen to finish the French Toast the bread was too soggy to fry on the griddle so I decided to pick it up out of the egg mixture with a large spatula and flipped it onto the waffle iron. When it was done you couldn’t even tell the difference between this waffle and one make from scratch so I decided to make my waffles that way from then on. I even served it to my B&B guests and they thought they were excellent. I do add some vanilla and and sugar to the egg mixture to make it taste a little more like a waffle.

It looks like I have published my favorite bread recipe a couple times before so you can go online at: Hyshamecho.blogspot.com to see it. Look on the bottom right of the screen and you will see: Blog Archive then go to July 11, 2014 for the recipe. I have tried putting a search tool on the page but because I have it as a private blog (only those that know the address) can see it, it doesn’t show up on a web search.

A couple recipes that I have made recently and really liked follow. The first one is for a ham that I cooked at Easter. It is probably the best ham that I have ever tasted and it doesn’t leave you needing to drink a ton of water afterwards.

Baked Ham

4 lbs Country Ham
1 Onion - peeled and quartered
1 Carrot - quartered
1 Stalk of Celery
1 lbs Bouquet Garni - see below
6 Peppercorns
FOR BAKING
1/4 cup Dark Brown Sugar
1/4 tsp Ground Mace
1 Orange Rind AND Juice
1 1/2 cup Apple Cider
Watercress - for garnish
BOUQUET GARNI
3 Parsley sprigs
1 Thyme sprig
1 Bay leaf
Allow 1/2 to 1 lb. of ham per person, depending on the amount of bone included. If the ham is heavily cured (like Virginia ham) immerse it for 4 hours in cold water and then drain. If lightly cured, cook it without soaking. Put the ham in a large saucepan with the vegetables, water to cover, bouquet garni and peppercorns. Cover and simmer gently 1 1/4 hours for a 2 lb. cut or 30 minutes per pound for cuts over 3 lbs. (20 minutes per pound is enough for large hams over 10 lbs.).
When the ham is cooked, drain it and peel away the skin. This is easily done by carefully lifting corner of skin with a knife and pulling with the fingers. If the ham is very hot, hold skin with a cloth or paper towel.
Set ham in a baking pan, fat side upwards.
Combine sugar, mace orange rind and juice to form a paste; spread over ham and pour cider around bottom. Bake in a moderately hot oven (375 F) for 30 minutes or until golden, basting often.
WATCHPOINT: Wait until the sugar begins to brown on the ham before basting with cider. You need to keep the ham moist. But it’s not too difficult to baste the lean part of ham and avoid sugared crust.
Finish the top as follows: if using an electric stove, caramelize the sugar crust by placing under a hot broiler for 5 to 7 minutes until crisp and brown. If using a gas stove, heat two metal skewers in the flame until red hot. Take each skewer in turn and hold lightly on the sugar crust to burn decorative lines.
Arrange ham on a platter and if serving hot, let stand in a warm place 15 minutes before serving to make carrying easier. If serving cold, allow ham to become completely cold before carving. Garnish with watercress and serve with raisin or Cumberland sauce.
NOTE: Bouquet garni (a bunch of herbs) -- is traditionally made of parsley, thyme and bay leaf (tied together with string if used in liquids which are to be strained). Otherwise herbs should be tied in a piece of cheesecloth for easy removal before serving the dish. If you have no fresh thyme use 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme. You can also use a loose tea steeper to put your dried parsley, thyme and bay leaf in. I didn’t have the fresh on hand so I used the dried and I thought it turned out fine.

Ham and Potato Corn Chowder

Source: www.closetcooking.com

A lighter, creamy and tasty ham and potato corn chowder that is pure comfort in a bowl!
3 tablespoons oil - or butter - OR both!
1 onion - diced
2 carrots - diced
2 stalks celery - diced
2 cloves garlic - chopped
1 teaspoon thyme - chopped
1/4 cup flour - (or rice flour for gluten free)
2 cups ham broth or chicken broth
2 cups milk
1 1/2 pounds potatoes - diced small and optionally peeled
8 ounces ham - diced
1 cup corn
salt - if using miso, wait until after you add the miso
pepper to taste
Heat the oil in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat, add the onions, carrots and celery and cook until tender, about 8-10 minutes.
Mix in the garlic, thyme and flour and cook until the flour is lightly browned, about 2-3 minutes.
Slowly stir in the broth, deglazing the pan as you go, add the milk and potatoes, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 10-12 minutes.
Add the ham and corn, cook until heated and season with salt and pepper. Print this post