A Holiday Ham to Remember

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Tis the season for a delicious spiral-cut glazed ham! If you’re looking for a tender, juicy dish that will WOW your guests at your next holiday feast, this ham is sure to please the crowd!

What you will need: 
1 (7- to 10-pound) spiral-sliced bone-in half ham
1 large plastic oven bag
1 recipe glaze (recipes below)

Preparation: 
Leaving ham’s inner plastic or foil covering intact, place ham in large container and cover with hot water; set aside for 45 minutes. Drain and cover again with hot water; set aside for another 45 minutes.

Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 250 F. Unwrap ham; discard plastic disk covering bone. Place ham in oven bag. Gather top of bag tightly so bag fits snugly around ham, tie bag, and trim excess plastic. Set ham cut side down in large roasting pan and cut 4 slits in top of bag with knife.

Bake ham until center registers 100 degrees, 1 to 1 1/2 hours (about 10 minutes per pound).
Remove ham from oven and increase oven temperature to 350 F. Cut open oven bag and roll back sides to expose ham. Brush ham with one-third of glaze and return to oven until glaze becomes sticky, about 10 minutes (if glaze is too thick to brush, return to heat to loosen).
Servings: 12-14

Start to finish: 1 hour, 45 minutes (plus 1 hour, 30 minutes for soaking)

Glazes:

Maple-Orange Glaze:
Makes 1 cup

Ingredients:
3/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup orange marmalade
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Prep: Combine ingredients in small saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until reduced to 1 cup, 5 to 10 minutes; set aside.

Nutrition information per serving:  390 calories; 157 calories from fat; 17 g fat; 7 g carbohydrate

Cherry-Port Glaze:
Makes 1 cup

Ingredients:
1/2 cup ruby port
1/2 cup cherry preserves
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon pepper

Prep: Simmer port in small saucepan over medium heat until reduced to 2 tablespoons, about 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and cook, stirring occasionally, until reduced to 1 cup, 5 to 10 minutes; set aside.

Nutrition information per serving: 463 calories; 151 calories from fat; 17 g fat; 25 g carbohydrate

Source: The Associated Press

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