Pineapple Rings and Maraschino Cherries No More! Use a “Shingled”Sweet-Tart Apple to Spruce Up Your Easter Ham

Ham has always been at the center of my family’s table for big spring gatherings, especially Easter. Grandma Clara would place a ham in her spatterware enamel roasting pan, pin canned pineapple slices to the outside and then shellac it with a mix of brown sugar, cherry juice, ground clove and other spices.

This year, for Spring Thanksgiving, we decided to give those classic pineapple rings a run for their money with an easy, yet impressive, update with thin slices of Cosmic Crisp apples. You can find them in all major grocery stores. I love their sweet-tart balanced taste particularly with salty, succulent ham.

The apple slices are easy to place on the ham with whole cloves pinning them to the skin. The layered effect, or “shingling,” gives the ham a “wow” factor after the apples caramelize and slightly curl along the edges.

The honey glaze is punched up with a little brown sugar and scented with some ginger. Fresh mint makes it very spring.

Happy Spring Thanksgiving, y’all!

Makes 1 8-pound bone-in ham Prep Time: 20-30 minutes Cooking Time: 2½ hours

Ingredients

• 1 fully-cooked, bone-in smoked ham (about 8 pounds) 

• 3-4 Cosmic Crisp apples

• 1½ cups honey, divided

• 2 cups 2 Towns Cider House Cosmic Crisp cider or apple juice

• ½ cup brown sugar

• ½ teaspoon ground ginger

• 20 whole cloves

• Mint sprigs

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.

2. Prepare two sheet trays with parchment paper. Set aside. 

3. Slice the apples through the core vertically about ¼-inch thick (I use a mandoline, but a sharp chef’s knife will work, too). Lay them in a single layer on the sheet trays and bake in the oven 5-7 minutes, or until the apples are slightly cooked and pliable. 

4. Meanwhile, score the skin side of the ham in a diamond pattern about 1 1/2-inch apart. Place the ham in a large roasting pan, pour the cider (or juice) and 1 cup of the honey over it. Bake for 1 hour, basting with pan juices every so often. Remove the ham from the oven. 

5. Starting at the top of the skin side of the ham, place an apple slice and hold it in place by piercing the center with a whole clove. Continue “shingling” the apple slices over the entire outside of the ham, slightly overlapping them, and using the cloves to secure them in place. 

6. In a small saucepan, combine the remaining ½ cup honey, brown sugar and ginger, and bring to a simmer over medium heat until syrupy. Brush the apple shingles with the glaze. 

7. Return the ham to the oven and continue baking for 1 hour and 30 minutes, or until a thermometer reads 130°F. Glaze every 15 minutes. The apples will slightly brown and curl at the edges. 

8. Slice ham and serve warm. Garnish as desired with sprigs of fresh mint.

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