Spiced Black Cherry Ham--& cheery too!

 

Spiced Black Cherry Ham

 

You have all heard of Black Forest Cherry Cake, Black Forest Ham, and Cherry Glazed Ham. Well, for Christmas this year I made a Spiced Black Cherry Ham. Italian, you ask? No, I did not use the typical Italian seasonings, but cherries do grow in Italy, and Italy ranks among the top countries for cherry production, along with France and Spain.

 

 

No pre-cooked spiral brown sugar ham for me this Christmas! And usually we have ravioli for Christmas, and since we did not do that this year, I just had to do something special with ham. I bought raw ham and prepared and cooked it myself, along with mashed sweet potatoes, rolls, salad, and cheese with crackers and grapes. What would an Italian holiday be without grapes? Grape dreams, People--here is the quite casual recipe:

 

Uncooked ham

Pour some cherry juice in at least 1" or as desired

Put in Dutch oven

Pierce lightly with fork over surfaces (so cherry juice

     sinks in)

Pour cherry juice over ham

Pour rest of juice into bottom of Dutch oven if desired

Lightly sprinkle nutmeg on top and sides of ham

Lightly sprinkle brown sugar on top and sides of ham

Dash pepper, if desired

Rub spices into ham to create a coating--

If desired, add cherry preserves to create a glaze

Whole cloves go into top and sides of ham

Toss in cherries, fresh or canned in juice

Cook

 

I used convection oven at 350 for a few hours for fast cooking. Otherwise use recommended settings for uncooked ham.

 

Nota bene: Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, or Happy Easter with ham! This goes with any holiday!