Smithfield ham is a specific form of “country ham” cured
in the town of Smithfield, Virginia. Country hams are usually sold in
stores unrefrigerated as whole, bone-in hams packaged in rough cotton bags,
with identifying markings printed on the bags. It is also sold in presoaked,
sliced, ready-to-cook form, usually vacuum-packaged. There are several
methods of cooking a country ham including slicing and pan-frying, baking
whole, and simmering for several hours (in several changes of water). Whole hams
may need to be scrubbed and soaked for several hours before eating to remove
the salt cure and mold. Even when soaked, they are still quite
salty.I didn't really want to do the soaking and scrubbing method, I
chose to go with a “City ham” for our state meal instead. Much less
salt, also!
For Virginia, our dessert called Virginia Apple Pudding …
but it is really just a fruit topped cake. Pudding in the US
characteristically denotes a sweet milk-based dessert similar in consistency to
egg-based custards. Since Virginia was one of the original 13 colonies,
the first citizens simply kept the traditional British word “pudding” when they
refer to “dessert.” Pudding may also refer to other dishes such as bread and
rice pudding.
Menu: Ham with Ginger Glaze, Sweet Potatoes, Virginia Apple Pudding
Outcome: The
ham was wonderful. I found Ginger Preserves at Publix and I amended the
recipe – it called for an entire 2 liter bottle of Ginger ale, but I only added
about a third that I basted the ham with (it seemed enough.) The ham was
spicy but not too much. J The Virginia Apple Pudding was –
according to Bill, one of the best desserts we’ve had. The cake was a
muffin-like texture and really quite good. We’ll be making this again
with peaches as soon as they are ripe. Can’t wait!
Next up: Bridget’s turn! She chose Florida!
Next up: Bridget’s turn! She chose Florida!
Virginia Ham and Baked Sweet Potato with cheese! |
Ham with Ginger Glaze
Prep time: 5 min. Cook time: 30
min.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- Ham: about 9-11 pounds, cured
- 2 liter bottle of ginger ale
- 1 cup orange marmalade**
- 1 Tbsp. dry ground ginger
- 1 Tbsp. Colman’s mustard powder
- 1 Tbsp. ground cloves
- **1 cup of chunky ginger preserves can be substituted for the orange marmalade and ground ginger.
Directions
For a 9-11 pound ham; adjust glaze according to weight of
ham.
1.
In a small bowl, mix the marmalade, ginger,
mustard powder, and cloves. Apply glaze all over the ham and place in a
roasting pan that can hold 2 liters of ginger ale.
2.
Add the entire bottle of ginger ale to the pan,
being sure not to rinse off the glaze from the ham.
3.
Bake at 425F for about 30 minutes, until heated
through, basting ham frequently with the pan juices and ginger ale.
Virginia Apple Pudding
Prep time: 15 min. Cook time: 35
min.
Ingredients
- 2 cups apples, sliced thinly
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- ¼ tsp. cinnamon
- 1 cup flour
- ¼ tsp. salt
- 1 cup milk
- ½ cup butter
Just before going in the oven...
Directions
1.
Preheat oven to 375 ยบ.
2.
Melt butter in a 2 quart casserole dish.
3.
Combine sugar, flour, salt, baking powder,
cinnamon and milk to make a batter.
4.
Pour the batter on the butter (without mixing).
5.
Put apples in the center of the batter (without
mixing).
6.
Bake in 375 degree oven until batter covers
apples and crust browns, approximately 30 to 40 minutes.
Virginia Apple Pudding |
This really sounds great! So glad that everyone liked it, this is similar to the way we fix ham at Christmas. The pudding sounds interesting, I bet it has a great flavor. Mom
ReplyDeleteI will be happy to make y'all a pudding and bring it over this weekend... What king of fruit would you like?
ReplyDelete