Guide to Holiday Ham Baking

Nothing says the Holidays have arrived like the aroma of freshly baked cured ham. Luckily, a beautifully glazed and garnished ham also makes the perfect table centerpiece at Christmas! However, those new to holiday entertaining, or just to ham preparation in general, can find creating the perfect holiday ham to be a daunting task. The goal of this article is to make selection, preparation and presentation of your holiday ham easy and stress free, by presenting each step one at a time. Get ready to amaze your guests!

Portion
Selection is one of the hardest parts of preparing the family ham. Everyone has an opinion on what is the best portion to choose from, and budget is always a consideration. It helps a little when making the decision to know what each portion offers and what the butcher's packaging information means. A ham is specifically the back leg portion of the animal that has been cured. You can purchase either a whole ham (the entire back leg) or a half ham, (either the rump or shank portion). The rump portion is the meatiest half of the ham, and is usually the more expensive and more popular half. The author prefers the whole or the shank portion , however, for the purpose of presentation. Either portion works well in the recipe, and makes a suitable holiday ham, use your own taste and preference in choosing between them.

Curing Methods
The most common method used for curing hams is 'brine' or salt water curing. Dry curing is more expensive than brine curing and results in a salty flavored meat, think country ham. Obviously, for your holiday feast you will prefer the milder, juicer texture of a brine cured ham. The curing process removes bacteria from the meat and provides some protection from spoilage.

Preparation
Once you have selected your ham, you will need to make sure you have a roasting pan large enough to leave a few inches room around the entire ham. If the roaster does not come with a lid, then you will also need enough foil to cover the pan and ham entirely. Bear in mind that if your ham is frozen at purchase you will need to allow plenty of time for it to thaw before the big day! Modern curing and processing techniques make preparation for cooking much easier than they were in years past. Unless your ham is dry cured there is no reason to soak it or take any drastic measures~ in fact I usually don't remove my ham from the package until I am ready to start cooking.

Baking The Ham
The secret to delicious baked meats is to keep them moist and flavorful, when it comes to ham preparation is the best weapon in your arsenal to ensure both! When preparing to bake the ham, you will need to remove the package and discard the extra liquid. Many hams have a small plastic guard over the bone end, that will also need to be removed, along with any extra netting or packaging. Brine cured hams naturally have a slick feel and smoky , salty aroma, but they should not have a slimy feel or rancid odor. Make sure your ham is fresh and has a pleasing aroma. Rinse ham if desired, then place fat side down in the roaster. Cover bottom of roaster with one quarter inch of water. Hams need to be baked about 30 minutes per pound to ensure they are completely done. (Check the label for the manufacturer's directions to make certain that you are cooking for the recommended time!)

Glaze and Garnish
Glaze and garnish are the icing on the cake for holiday meats! The glaze adds to the flavor and the appearance of the dish, whereas the garnish can add both flavor and interesting decoration to the centerpiece. Here's a glaze and garnish recipe and technique that it is guaranteed to sweeten the holidays.
Ingredients
1 large can of pineapple slices
2 TBS of packed brown sugar
1 jar of maraschino cherries (mix red and green cherries for Christmas)
1 pack of party toothpicks

Remove the juice from the pineapples and set aside in a small bowl. Blend together brown sugar and pineapple juice. Drizzle about 1 TBS over ham before putting it into the oven. Repeat at 30 minute intervals throughout baking time. Once ham has complete baking use the pineapples as a garnish. Simply lay them over the ham in a single layer and secure them with a maraschino cherry per slice held on by a decorative toothpick. You can add the pineapples while the ham is still in the roaster and return it to the oven and broil for a few minutes until the pineapples turn lightly brown, or you can add them after you have placed it on the serving dish and leave them plain. Either approach makes a beautiful and flavorful centerpiece that people will be talking about for seasons to come.