Monday, March 24, 2008

our first easter

ghostly eggs waiting to get all dyed up

ok, not our first ever. but our first easter as married peeps. we had a small easter meal, dyed eggs, ate candy, and i made a cheese cake for the first time (more on that in the future). everything was super easy because on top of that, i had gocco-ing to do (yeah, more on that later, too) and i didn't want to spend my time in the kitchen all day. so onto the goods.

i had a moment while making the ham. i'm alone in the kitchen, preparing a meal for just 2 people...and i find myself cutting diamond shapes into the skin and placing a clove in each cross point. for one of the first times, possibly ever, i thought...what am i doing this for? not in a bad way..but in an "ok crazy lady, no need for these shenanigans, just put it in the oven" way. but, as always, it makes me happier to spend that time if the end result is even a little bit better than "just doing" and behold! my first crosshatched, clove poked easter ham:

super simple (seriously, it's sandra lee's!) glazed ham
2/3 c bourbon
1 c honey
1/3 c molasses
1/2 c orange maramlade
whole cloves
bone-in smoked ham, fully cooked & unsliced

1. heat first 4 ingredients over low heat and boil for 15 minutes or until reduced by half (stir occasionally)
2. cut a diamond pattern in the skin of the ham and place a clove at each cross point
3. pour half the glaze over the ham an bake at 350 F (15 minutes per pound), baste occasionally
4. remove from oven and let ham rest for 20 minutes before slicing

roasted garlic asparagus = potent goodness

roasted garlic asparagus is just about as easy as it sounds, so i'm not even writing the "formal" recipe. roast the garlic in tin foil (cut the tops off) at 400F until just golden. roast the asparagus at 425F after tossing with some olive oil and s&p for about 20 minutes. coat the asparagus in a mixture of lemon juice, butter and mashed roasted garlic. commence dragon breath speech.

our spread also included sweet potato biscuits - they need some work, so i'm not including the recipe.
::shakes fist at paula dean::


hippity hoppity happy easter!

2 comments:

Thomas said...

I love the perfect spectrum order. ;) That ham looked amazing. And I think we should all continually shake fists at Paula Dean!

Homebrewer Brian said...

Thanks for posting this. I'm definitely going to do the Roasted Garlic Asparagus for Easter this year. I might even give that glaze a try.