Left Over Christmas Ham idea...

First and foremost... I hate turkey. I know.. un-american.. I've never tasted your recipe... Ive not tried this or that.. Trust me.. been there.. done that.. got the T-Shirt. Deep fried turkey (Not as good as deep fried twinkies or mars bars) Basil rubbed turkeys.. Turkey cooked upside down in a bag.. Turkey stuff with pine nuts.. Turkey stuffed with stuff.. On and on.. I just don't like that texture. Ok! Enough about Turkey!

What I do like is a good ham.. Cure 81, Honey Baked ham, Bilinski's (www.bilinkskis.com)  Ham I am. (HamIAm.com) and a few others.. Sometimes the Costco ham (Believe it or not.. ) is pretty good.

The way I cook it is pretty simple. Face down, covered in tin foil. about 20 min per lb at 275 degrees. This gives you a juicy ham. Then add the glaze of choice.. I like this one:

Ingredients:

1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 cup soft bread crumb

Directions:

Combine sugar, vinegar, mustard  in a bowl. Stir with a fork until sugar dissolves. Stir in bread crumbs. Spread glaze evenly over ham during final 30 minutes of cooking.

Ok. Cook your ham. Eat it. Like it. You will have a left over bone and, if you are smart, a little bit of meat on it.

Now is the time for your ham to be truly tasty. I like Ham hocks and beans.. Here is one of my favorite Recipes.

Ingredients

• left over bone and meat from your Christmas ham.
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup minced yellow onions( I like to go a little light on this)
• 1/4 cup minced celery
• 1/4 cup minced green bell peppers
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 2 quarts Chicken Stock or
• canned low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 pound dried black beans, rinsed, picked over, soaked overnight in water to cover, and drained(Most beans have rocks and crud in them... CLEAN THEM WELL!)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup minced green onions (green and white parts)
• 1/4 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

Instructions

Score the skin of each ham hock with a sharp knife.

Heat the oil in a large deep pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the ham hocks, onions, celery, bell peppers, crushed red pepper flakes, oregano, thyme, and bay leaves and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the stock and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 hours.

Add the beans and stir. Continue simmering over medium-low heat until the beans are just tender and ham hocks are very tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Season with the salt and continue cooking for 15 to 30 minutes, until the beans are tender and the ham hocks are beginning to fall apart. Remove from the heat.

Spoon the ham hocks and beans into bowls (or cut the meat from the bones and stir the meat back into the pot of beans before ladling into bowls) and sprinkle with the green onions and parsley.

Yield: 4 servings

Sorry no pictures.. It was a madhouse at Christmas.. and, frankly, I was focused on other stuff. Enjoy.. Im going to try and post something here each week. So! my 12 followers.. Get your friends to check this out will you? And I will try to get more picture happy!