Apple Cider Glazed Ham #SecretRecipeClub

It’s a Secret Recipe Club bonus reveal today!  Since there’s an extra Monday this month, SRC is back with a themed reveal:  Leprechauns & Bunnies!

For this special reveal, I was assigned Sarah’s Blog, Well Dined.  Sarah started off blogging restaurant reviews, but soon shifted her focus to home cooking.  She typically posts seasonal and (reasonably) healthy recipes.

I was immediately drawn toward the Easter recipes.  I’ve had a hankering for home baked ham lately, and Sarah’s blog did not disappoint.

First I can across her Dr. Pepper Glazed Ham with Prunes.  I very nearly made it, but I don’t really drink Dr. Pepper anymore (I got a food aversion to Dr. Pepper while I was pregnant with Sarah Catherine and it never went away!) and I really wasn’t sure how the fam would react to prunes.

Lucky for me, I kept poking around and found two more ham recipes!!  Yay!!

Hubs loves Apples Cider, so I immediately knew I would be making the cider ham (and saving a bit of cider for him to drink, of course).  Sarah’s ham was raw and able to take in more brine.  I was only able to find smoked ham at my local butcher (actually I probably could have asked, but I grabbed what was in the case and didn’t even think about asking until I got home!  Oops!), so I adapted the brine (salt + sugar + flavor) to a marinade (flavor all the way!)

The resulting ham was incredibly delicious! 

The ham was delicious the day of and the leftovers were fantastic as sandwiches & soup!

Thank you, Sarah, for an amazing recipe!

Recipe Note:

I was only able to get a pre-brined, smoked ham from my local butcher shop, so I marinated my ham instead.  For full brining instructions for raw ham, visit Well Dined.

Apple Cider Glazed Ham

Adapted from Well Dined

Marinade

1 (7-8 lb) bone-in smoked ham

1 qt apple cider

1 qt cold water

2 bay leaves

1 cinnamon stick

1 tbsp whole black pepper corns

1 tsp whole cloves

1 tsp whole allspice

½ orange + peel, peeled & segmented)

Rub

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup whole grain mustard

1 cup fresh parsley

1 tbsp dry sage

9 cloves garlic, peeled

1 tsp salt

1 ½ tsp black pepper

Glaze

1 qt apple cider

Place the ham into a brining bag (I place an oven roasting bag into a stock pot to hold it up).  Add in all of the marinade ingredients.  Carefully press the bag to remove excess air and tie at the top.  The marinade should be in contact with most of the ham.  Refrigerate for 3-4 hours.

Remove the ham from the marinade.  Place in a roasting pan, cut side down.  Pat dry and score the skin with a knife.

Place all of the rub ingredients into a small food processor and process until combined.  Rub all over the ham.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Bake the ham according to package instructions, usually about 3 ½ hours. 

Meanwhile, to make the glaze, place the cider into a small saucepan over medium heat.  Cook until reduced to about 1 cup.  Brush the ham with glaze occasionally during the cooking.  If the ham starts to get too dark, cover with the pan lid or tin foil.

Once done, allow the ham to rest for about 10 minutes, then carve and serve.

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