Orange Rum Glazed Ham

Photo Courtesy Taste of Home

One year at Christmas I was trying to use what I had in stock and came up with the best ham I ever made. A friend from work had left a bottle of dark rum at the house from a party and another friend had given us a fruit basket for the holidays. I searched through my oldest recipe book and it covered many types of glazes for ham, so I combined a couple of their ideas. It turned out great. It was very moist with just a hint of orange. Of course, I didn't write down how I made it and have been trying to recreate it ever since. This is as close as I've come. (Note - don't use a shank ham, it's not the right cut for this dish. If you're making ham and beans, yes, but for carving for a holiday dinner, no way.)

Orange Rum Glazed Ham
1 6-7 lb. bone in cooked ham
1 cup dark rum, divided into two 1/2 cups
1/2 cup brown sugar, divided into two 1/4 cups
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. ginger divided into two 1/2 tsp.
1 T. spicy mustard
1 medium to large orange (use one half for zest and juice, other half for slices.)

Preheat oven to 350. Trim fat on ham to 1/4 inch. Put ham fat side up on foil lined baking pan and score diagonally to make a diamond pattern. (As ham cooks it will spread so this doesn't need to be very deep.) Pour 1/2 cup rum in bottom of pan around ham. Mix 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 tsp. ginger and 1 tsp. dry mustard and pat on scored part of ham. Cover with foil and bake 30 minutes.

Glaze - In a small saucepan mix 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 tsp. ginger, 1 T. spicy mustard, 2 tsp. orange zest, juice from 1/2 orange, and 1/2 cup rum. Over medium heat simmer glaze for 5 minutes, stirring often to dissolve sugar and mix ingredients well. After it's warmed and well blended turn off and let set to use as needed.

Remove ham after 30 minutes and brush on half of glaze, recover and return to oven for another 30 minutes. Remove from oven and add remaining glaze and return to oven uncovered for 30 minutes. For last 30 minutes of baking, arrange 4-6 slices of orange on top of ham (secure with toothpicks if needed) and baste with liquid in pan for the last 30 minutes. Let set for at least a half an hour before slicing. Total cooking time 2 hours. Serves 8.

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