Holiday Ham Recipes

Holiday Ham Recipes
by Candis Reade

A baked ham recipe with flavorful fruity sauce!

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal live. John 3:16 (NIV)

Ingredients:
1. 12 slices cooked ham, about 1/2-inch thick
2. 6 slices pineapple
3. 1 cup raisins
4. 1 cup pineapple juice
5. 1 cup water
6. 2 tablespoons cornstarch

Preparation:
Place 6 ham slices in shallow baking dish. Arrange pineapple slices over ham slices; top with remaining ham slices. In a saucepan over low heat, combine raisins, pineapple juice, and water. Simmer for 10 minutes. Mix cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water and stir into hot juice mixture. Continue cooking, stirring, until mixture is thickened and smooth. Pour sauce over ham slices. Bake 20 minutes at 350°. For each portion, allow 2 slices of ham and a slice of pineapple; serve with sauce and hot cooked rice, if desired. Serves 6.

Nutritional Content:
Depending on the fat content of the meat, hams are great source of high-grade proteins from animals. It is favorably good as compared to beef because of a great energy content of 1,200 up to 2,600 calories for every pound. Aside from this, hams are also great source of vitamins and minerals such as Vitamin B1, riboflavin, iron, calcium, phosphorous and niacin.

History:
Hams are made from rear legs of hogs. These are prepared meticulously as food. It can be fresh ham or cured ham. Generally, holiday ham recipes center on the salting, and smoking of the meat, as well as, drying. Approximately 18% to 20% of the weigh to the hog goes to the ham. In the US, aside from the rear portion of the animal, the shoulder hams, the picnic hams, and California ham are also some of the varieties that are marketed. These are some of the varieties of hams that you can purchase in the market today.