what do you want to eat?

Shaker Ham

We made Shaker Ham for New Year's Day and Denny's last dinner before heading off to the big sand.  This is his mom's recipe and it is always the most delicious ham.  And I have tons of leftovers to last for awhile.  Hmmm...maybe scrambled eggs with ham will be a good breakfast today *grin*.  You can also refer to this post from January 2007 for lots of ideas for the leftovers.

Toddler Note:  Although Dylan usually likes a ham and cheese, he wasn't much interested in just ham.  Or the split pea soup that he loved when I made it last time.  Oh well.

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Shaker Ham

For a 10-12 pound ham (cook it 15 minutes per
pound) in a 325 degree oven (I think)  or follow the directions on the packaging for cook times.

Wipe ham with a damp paper towel and put it in a shallow pan. On top of the
ham put 1/2 cup sliced onions and bay leaf(ves). I put more onions and more
bay leaves usually. Put two cups of apple cider in the bottom of the pan and
cover it tightly with foil.  Put it in the oven for the cook time required minus an hour.

Cooking sauce - to be used during the last 45 minutes.
Boil together for five minutes; strain before using on the ham:
2 cups of cider
1/4 cup of sliced onions
1 tbsp. of lemon juice
1/2 cup brown sugar

Take the ham out of the oven 45 minutes before it should be done. Drain off
the old cider and discard. Score the ham in diamonds and stud with cloves.
Every 10-15 minutes pour the cooking sauce over the ham. Don't cover the pan
in between.

Serving sauce - serve with this sauce warmed for table use  (okay, I just realized I forgot this part this year.)
1 quart cider
2 pounds peeled and thinly sliced apples ( I used Granny Smith's)
1/2 cup sugar
Boil the cider down to one cup and put in the apples and sugar and simmer.
(I usually boil it down until I get tired of doing this :) sometimes it gets
very little boiling

pork & tomatillo stew

I bought myself a new crockpot for my birthday last week. Since then, we made a dish with sweet potatoes and chicken legs spiced with curry powder which was pretty good. But, on Sunday, Denny suggested we use it again. I had a bag of tomatillos in the refrigerator that I needed to use, so I did a search for tomatillos and crockpot and found several variations of a Pork and Tomatillo Stew. The one I went with came from about.com and turned out pretty well.

The only change I made was to add a topping of Avocado and Lime Sour Cream (simply, 1 avocado, a big spoonful of sour cream, and juice from 1/2 a lime pureéd together). A dollop of this on top made the stew extra good.

I served it with cornbread made from Jiffy cornbread mix, yogurt, can of corn, lime juice and cilantro.

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Pork and Tomatillo Stew

By Diana Rattray, About.com

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 pounds boneless pork ribs or loin, trimmed and cut in bite-size cubes
• salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups diced celery
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 3 to 6 tablespoons drained jalapeno rings or chopped mild chile peppers
• 1 cup julienne cut carrots
• 2 medium potatoes, cut in small cubes
• 1 pound tomatillos, husks removed, washed and diced
• 2 cans (14.5 ounces each) diced tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• pinch dried oregano
• hot sauce, to taste
• salt and pepper, to taste
• fresh chopped cilantro, optional

PREPARATION:

Sprinkle pork cubes lightly with salt and pepper; toss with the flour. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet; add pork and sauté, stirring, until nicely browned; transfer to a 5 to 6-quart slow cooker. In the same skillet, adding a little more oil if needed, sauté the celery and onion until tender. Add garlic, chicken broth, and jalapeno peppers or mild peppers, stirring and scraping browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Set aside.

Meanwhile, add to the slow cooker the carrots, potatoes, and tomatillos. Pour tomatoes over the top, then add the onion and celery mixture from the skillet. Stir to blend ingredients. Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 hours, or LOW for 6 hours. Add seasonings. Cook for 1 to 2 hours longer on HIGH or about 2 to 3 hours longer on LOW. Taste and adjust seasonings. Serve with a sprinkling of cilantro, if desired, and hot baked cornbread.
Serves 6 to 8.

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Toddler note:  Dylan almost took a bite of the pork, but he put it in his mouth and then took it right back out.  However, the cornbread was a big hit..he ate two pieces with his peas.