Easter Ham

By Andrew Hunter

Easter symbolizes the dawn of spring – the sweetest season of the year. It’s a time when families gather together for a feast. The centerpiece of our feast is always a traditional Easter ham.

Other dishes we like to make are boiled red potatoes, because they look like eggs, tossed in a little butter, salt and dill, and bright green sugar snap peas because they’re the boys’ favorite veggie. Whatever you do though, try to make most of dinner in advance, so you’ll have time to hide colored eggs for the festive hunt.

This honey-brown sugar glaze will seep between the spiral slices and season the inside, too. Buy a ham that’s fully cooked, so all you’ll have to do is bake it just to heat it through.

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Spiral-Sliced Ham with Honey–Brown Sugar Glaze 1 spiral-cut half ham, fully cooked (approximately 8 pounds)
1 cup honey
1 tablespoon orange zest
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Pinch of kosher salt

Remove the plastic wrapping from the ham, place the ham on a rack in a roasting pan, cover loosely with aluminum foil, and leave it for 60 minutes to come to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

To make the glaze, heat the remaining ingredients in a small saucepan for 30 seconds while stirring with a whisk to combine. Brush the glaze liberally on the ham, pour a cup of water in the bottom of the pan (this will make cleanup much easier), cover the pan with foil, and bake for 30 minutes. Baste the ham with the glaze and roast for another 60 minutes. Remove foil, baste again and roast uncovered for a final 30 minutes. Remove the ham from the oven, baste a final time, place on a platter, and serve.

The leftover ham makes terrific sandwiches for school and work lunches. It’s great scrambled into eggs for breakfast and even sautéed with green beans for a spring stir-fry. Eat the leftover ham for a few days until you’ve had your fill, then wrap and freeze the remainder for up to 6 weeks.

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