Easter Ham

Easter ham.  That's all I can think about.  My Mom's Easter ham.  Yeah, I know. Easter should be about jellybeans and chocolate bunnies.  Oh, don't even get me started on the whole bunnies leaving eggs thing.  Here's the deal.  I like Easter.  I love putting on an egg hunt for our friends and family every year.  I enjoy breaking bread with my family for the holiday.  The simple fact is, I'm selfish.  It's all a means to an end.  That end is my Mom's Easter ham.  Everyone in the family starts salivating for it the day after Christmas.  It's just that good.  My sister and I know how to make it, but the truth is, nobody makes it like Mom.  Oh, and the gravy!  Have you every had ham gravy?  I would bet you that only a few of you have.  Most people are shocked when I talk about the ham gravy.  Sort of sweet from the brown sugar, savory from the ham.  Oh, it's like a heavenly little party in your mouth.

Last year I begged Mommy dearest to write down her ham recipe.  I was informed that it's not a recipe, it's just done, it's eyeballed.  Well, I get it.  I make lots of things the same way.  You just know it by look and taste.  I begged some more.  Frankly, I begged for years.  Finally, she succumbed.  Mom wrote it down as she made it.  I'm sharing it with you, dear readers.  The only problem is that no matter how good any of us get at making it, it will never be the same as hers.  Maybe it's the love.

Mom's Easter Ham

1 - 22 Pound Hillshire ham (yes, you'll need a big one.  LEFTOVERS!)

6 C water

1 Can ginger ale

1 Can 7-up

1 can pineapple slices

1 small jar maraschino cherries

whole cloves

1 jars Heinz Homestyle Pork Gravy

4 TB brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350 

Place ham in a large pan with the water.  Bake, covered with foil for 2 1/2 hours.  While baking, mix 1/4 C of the juice from the pineapple slices with with brown sugar, adding more sugar as needed until it is thick.  Remove the ham from the oven.  Score the top, lay the pineapple slices on the ham.  Spoon the glaze over the the slices and the rest of the ham.  Place cherries in the center of each pineapple slice.  Stud ham with whole cloves.  To the pan, add the rest of the pineapple juice, 7-up, ginger ale and the gravy.  Mix slightly, cover ham, bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Remove the foil from the ham, bake for an additional 45 minutes in order to brown the ham.  Add more water to the pan if needed.  

Remove ham from oven, tent with foil and allow to stand for 15 to 30 minutes before carving.

Enjoy!

Oh, and don't forget to use those fabulous drippings to make the most incredible ham gravy you will ever taste!

New Kitchen-Aid, No Vanilla and Baking Powder Biscuits

Life has been a little busy for the last couple of weeks.  My Mom was expecting alot of company, so being the amazing daughter I am (don't laugh!), I thought I'd be helpful by making sure she had lots of baked goods in the house.  Plans were made for me to make yet another large batch of Strawberry Muffins (which I am officially tired of making), coffee cake, cookies and cheese straws.  The first thing I did was start the dough for the coffee cake.  Part way through the kneading process, my faithful Kitchen-Aid mixer gave a nasty sound, and quit working.  Not only did the motor get hotter than sin, but if met with any resistance, the spinning mechanism that causes it to whip, beat or knead wouldn't work.  Thank God my kids were not inside the house for the string of expletives that came out of my mouth!  I mean, that's not supposed to happen with those mixers.  Especially when I have a million things to do.  So, after searching through storage, I found my old hand beaters, and mixed up everything else that I needed to, cursing the whole time, and realizing how lost I would without my mixer.  It may not seem like a big deal to some, but I use that mixer at least once a week, frequently more than that.  My darling husband, who loves and understands me, told me to buy a new one.  I blinked once, and started searching for the rock bottom prices.  I knew I wanted to upgrade, and I know the darn things are expensive.  Noah loves me, and he loves the goodies my mixer turns out, but I'm sure the tune of $500 would have given him a slight heart attack.  Thank goodness one of the local department stores was having one of their biggest sales of the year, and I was able to obtain the holy grail of Kitchen Aid's, the Professional 600, for under $300.  Now ensconced on my kitchen counter is my shiny new mixer.  Maybe not the color I wanted, but when in a hurry, beggars can't be choosers.  

So, here I am with this beautiful new mixer, and I am itching to make something.  Thanks to all the muffins I've had to make in the last 3 weeks (8 dozen at least), I have run out of vanilla, and do not have time to make a run up to Penzey's.  What to do?  I have to make something!  There's a shiny new toy that I have coveted for years in my kitchen!  So, I started taking stock of my ingredients, realizing I really need to clean out the baking cabinet.  It hit me.  Baking Powder Biscuits.  I love biscuits.  I don't make or eat them often, but oh, do I love them.  With a little strawberry jam, warm from the oven with honey butter, dipped in soup, you name it, I love them.  They're incredibly easy to make, and versatile enough for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  In fact, since it's cold out today, I'll pull some soup out of the freezer, and serve with the biscuits.  Voila, instant supper.  I know, I know.  I'm a freaking genius!  I'm also done taking requests to make Strawberry Muffins for everyone for at least a month.  I posted the recipe, and I know that the readers who requested them, have the recipe, even if they haven't signed up to follow this blog.  No more muffins!  At least, not until I cave under pressure from puppy dog eyes.

Baking Powder Biscuits


2 C all purpose flour
1 TB baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/3 C Crisco Butter Flavor shortening
1 C Whole Milk (2% works as well)


Preheat oven to 450


Grease a baking sheet or line with parchment or silpat. 


Put flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl, stir to mix.  Add shortening, mix on low until irregular clumps form.  Add milk, and stir on low just long enough to moisten the flour.  Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface, and knead 10 to 15 times, until dough comes together and is no longer sticky. 


Pat dough down into an oval, 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick.  Using a 2 inch cutter, cut biscuits out of dough.  Place on baking sheet, close together.  Bake for 15-20 minutes, until tops start to brown slightly.