Want to Try Something Different for Easter Dinner This Year?

I was sitting here thinking about Easter dinner this past week. I happen to be the one who hosts this dinner for the whole family.

Earlier this year I had found a new ham that has now become our family favorite. Because this is my blog, I am going to give a shout out to this wonderful ham. This ham is a ham I found at Sam's Club called "Castlewood" ham... it comes in a gold wrapper with netting on it. You can purchase either a whole ham or a half ham.

This ham is in my opinion, the most wonderful ham I have ever had the opportunity to sink my teeth into. It is spiral cut with NO bone and comes with a glaze packet which is out of this world!

I usually put the glaze on it before it ever goes into the oven and I make sure that all of that sticky goodness goes in between each piece of ham. I then lay it on the flat part with the rounded end sticking up in the air.

I add a can of beer, cover it with aluminum foil, pop it in the oven at 225 degrees for 2-3 hours, depending on the size of the ham, and then check on it to see that it is not drying out.

Now, you can use the juice from the ham to make your gravy and I will tell you that it is nothing short of heaven! You do not need to add the beer to the ham, you could really use just water, but why? The beer gives it a tenderness you can't beat and adds a flavor to the juices for gravy that grandma never thought of! One more thing about this ham? There is virtually no waste whatsoever!

For those of you who like a bone in your ham to make soup with, don't worry about the bone. The flavor from the left over gravy is dynamite added to bean or pea soup, that will give you more flavor than the bone I kid you not! I will give you my personal recipe for my gravy in this blog. Back to the ham!

FYI... this ham is the lowest in sodium that I have been able to find at any store which is an added plus for all sodium sensitive people! It is just a win, win, situation. However, the down side to this ham is that we have been eating it so much lately that I just couldn't bring myself to want to do ham this year again for Easter dinner!

Now, I thought to myself ... why not try going outside the box this year for Easter dinner. Why can't we do this? Well, we are going to do this. I have decided that the menu this year is going to be "Kentucky Hot Browns!" Kentucky Hot Browns is a classic dish at the Kentucky Derby by the way. Along with the Hot Browns we will have a fantastic mashed potato chive casserole, a cream cheesy corn dish, vegetable platter and a vanilla bean bundt cake for dessert. If you are wondering what a Kentucky Hot Brown is ... I will leave it on this blog!

This week I am going to leave some "out of the box" recipes for those of you who are looking for something just a little different for this Easter's dinner fare... hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons butter
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups milk
1/2 cup freshly-grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg, room temperature and beaten
Salt and black pepper to taste
1/2 cup prepared whipped cream
8 slices toasted white bread, crust trimmed off
1 pound cooked turkey breast, thinly sliced
Grated Parmesan cheese for topping
1 (2-ounce) jar diced pimientos, drained
8 bacon slices, fried crisp

Preparation:

In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Gradually add flour, stirring constantly, until smooth and free from lumps. Gradually stir in milk until sauce comes to a gentle boil, stirring constantly; remove from heat. Add Parmesan cheese and stir until melted and well blended.

In a small bowl, beat egg. Gradually add 1 cup of hot sauce, 1/3 cup at a time, to the egg, stirring constantly. Gradually add egg mixture to remaining sauce, stirring constantly until well blended; add salt and pepper to taste. Fold in whipped cream.

For each Hot Brown sandwich, place two slices of toasted bread on a metal (or flameproof) dish. Cover the toast with a liberal amount of turkey. Pour a generous amount of sauce over the turkey. Sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese. Place entire dish under a broiler, approximately 4 to 5 minutes or until the sauce is speckled brown and bubbly. Remove from broiler, sprinkle with diced pimientos, cross two pieces of bacon over the top, and serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings of two open-faced sandwiches each.

*** Cooks note:  I like to add a couple of sliced tomatoes on top of the turkey before I add the sauce. You can also quarter a tomato and put two sections on the plate on each side as well.

4 russet potatoes, sliced into 1/4 inch slices

1 onion, sliced into rings

salt and pepper to taste

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups milk 
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

What to do:

*I slice and add potatoes to boiling water for about 8 minutes, draine and run under cool water before layering in prepared dish.(But if you are feeling lazy then skip this step, but your potatoes might not be as soft)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Butter a 1 quart casserole dish.
2. Layer 1/2 of the potatoes into bottom of the prepared casserole dish. Top with the onion slices, and add the remaining potatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. In a medium-size saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Mix in the flour and salt, and stir constantly with a whisk for one minute. Stir in milk. Cook until mixture has thickened. Stir in cheese all at once, and continue stirring until melted, about 30 to 60 seconds. Pour cheese over the potatoes, and cover the dish with aluminum foil. Bake 1 1/2 hours in the preheated oven. Let sit for ten minutes before serving.

Cupcakes
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon mint extract
4 eggs
2 3/4 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1/2 cup bourbon (or whiskey)
1/2 cup Creme de Menthe

Icing
3 cups sifted powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon mint extract
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
milk

*****

Cupcakes
Preheat the oven to 350º F, and grease or line 30 cupcake cups.

Combine salt, baking powder, and 1 3/4 cups of the flour. Beat butter, sugar, eggs, and extracts in a large mixing bowl until creamy. Gradually beat in the flour mixture. Add the milk and liquors to the batter, then the rest of the flour (1 cup). Mix as little as possible, just until the batter comes together. Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake cups. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Let cool.

Icing
Combine the powdered sugar, salt, extracts and melted butter and beat until creamy. Gradually add milk until the texture is right for piping. When the cupcakes are completely cool, pipe or spread the icing on top. Garnish with cake sparkles or sprinkles, a straw (trimmed to size), and mint leaves.

4 1"-thick lamb loin chops (about 1 lb), or frenched lamb rib chops
2 tbsp. plus 3⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups loosely packed fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
1⁄2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh tarragon leaves
1 tbsp. salt-packed capers, soaked, rinsed, drained, and finely chopped
1⁄4 tsp. crushed red chile flakes
6 oil-packed anchovy filets, drained and finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped

Directions

1. Put lamb into a small baking dish, rub with 2 tbsp. oil, and season with salt and pepper; set aside to let rest for 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, make the salsa verde: Combine mint, parsley, tarragon, capers, chile flakes, anchovies, and garlic in a medium bowl. Slowly drizzle in remaining oil while stirring with a fork to make the salsa verde; set aside.
3. Build a medium-hot fire in a charcoal grill or set gas grill to medium-high heat. (Alternatively, heat a cast-iron grill pan over medium-high heat.) Add loin chops and cook, flipping once, until browned and crusty and cooked to desired temperature, 6–8 minutes for medium rare if using loin chops (rib chops will take only 4 minutes or so to reach medium rare). Transfer lamb to a platter. Stir sauce and drizzle over chops, reserving some of the sauce to serve on the side.

Serves 2.

Salsa:

2 large oranges
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 scallions, finely sliced
3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed, drained and coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons orange zest
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Salmon:

Vegetable or canola oil, for oiling the grill
4 (4 to 5-ounce) center cut salmon fillets, skinned, each about 3-inches square
2 tablespoons amber agave nectar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

For the salsa: Peel and trim the ends from each orange. Using a paring knife, cut along the membrane on both sides of each segment. Free the segments and add them to a medium bowl. Add the olive oil, lemon juice, parsley, scallions, mint, capers, orange zest, lemon zest, and red pepper flakes. Toss lightly and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Set aside.

For the salmon: Put a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Brush the grilling rack with vegetable oil to keep the salmon from sticking. Brush the salmon on both sides with the agave nectar and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Grill until the fish flakes easily and is cooked through, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Transfer the salmon to a platter and allow to rest for 5 minutes.

Spoon the salsa verde on top of the salmon or serve on the side as an accompaniment.

Last but not least... The Kitchen Diva's Own Ham Gravy! Let me start out by telling you that this gravy is on the sweet side but it is also the most requested gravy among my family and friends. The reason for the sweetness is of course the drippings from the ham which come from the glaze packet and that's where the sugar lies. Don't worry though, this gravy is the perfect marriage for the ham and even the mashed potatoes!

1/2 Castlewood Spiral Cut Ham (any ham will do)

2 cans beer (pick a flavored beer you like of course)

2/3 stick butter

1/2 cup flour

1/3 teaspoon black cracked pepper

2 teaspoons any dried herb you like. I use Mrs. Dash's original

1 cup water for thinning gravy if necessary

In deeper roasting pan, add ham and lay it on it's side so that you can see all the spiral cuts.

Take the glaze packet and add 4 tablespoons of boiling water and mix well to combine.

Spread the glaze all over the ham making sure to get the glaze between the slices of ham as much as possible.

Lay the ham down on the flat side so that the rounded part is facing up.

Add the two cans of beer to the roaster and cover with foil.

Bake at 225 degrees for two to three hours but check frequiently to make sure ham doesn't dry out.

When done, remove ham from oven. Place ham on serving platter and with rounded end up, slice right down the middle for perfect slices and arrange on platter.

Drain the liquid from the roaster into large bowl. Add the butter and spices to the roaster and heat until butter is melted. Add flour and whisk well to incorporate. Add a ladle of the ham liquid to the flour mixture and continue to whisk rapidly to make sure that there are no lumps. When smooth add the rest of the ham liquid  and simmer until it thickens to a nice gravy consistency. If it gets too thick add some of the water and if it is too thin, mix more flour in a cup with hot water and whisk until there are no lumps and add slowly to the gravy until it is as thick as you desire it to be.

If you decide to try it, I hope that ya'll love it like this family does... thank you!