When I think of my holiday ham, I first think of Thanksgiving and Christmas. Naturally, for me anyway, turkey and ham go together for these two special occasions.

However, when I think of Easter, I automatically think of ham, deviled eggs, Easter egg hunts, Easter baskets and pretty little boys and girls all dressed up in their new clothes.

We always had an Easter egg hunt; no Easter would be complete without one. I wanted to find the golden egg because the prize was a huge basket filled with candy eggs and bunnies. I never found the golden egg, but I always enjoyed the hunt. We never had a “store bought basket,” but we always had a beautiful basket.

Mama was so crafty and made certain that none of us went without something we needed. She would always make the most beautiful baskets using whatever she had available around the house. She could take cardboard boxes and scraps of material and make that perfect basket. Looking back, I don’t think we realized how blessed we were. Mama could do anything, and she is missed by her family and so many friends.

Sunday morning was such a special time: sunrise service, beautiful music, interesting sermon from the pastor and little boys and girls in their pretty clothes. I thought of this as a “new beginning.”

I always had a new dress and tried my best not to get it dirty. The first thing we did when we got home from church was to change clothes so our clothes wouldn’t get dirty. And, as always, Mama would have a dinner cooked and ready for us to eat. Back then, we ate breakfast, dinner and supper, but now we eat breakfast, lunch and dinner. I don’t know why it changed like that, but it did.

When Mama cooked ham, she had a fresh ham. It would take hours for it to cook at 350 degrees, but she would cook it before we left for Sunday school on Sunday morning.

I added the cherries, and I purchase a precooked spiral-cut HoneyBaked ham. The pineapple slices and brown sugar are a “must have” to make this holiday ham.

Holiday Ham

Ingredients

1 spiral-cut HoneyBaked ham

20-ounce can pineapple slices, reserve juice

Whole cloves, optional

1 small jar maraschino cherries

1 cup light brown sugar

Preparation

Preheat oven as directed on package of ham. Score the surface of the ham with shallow diagonal cuts; insert cloves into cuts on ham. Pour a bit of pineapple juice on top of ham and rub about ¼ cup of brown sugar into the ham. Arrange pineapple slices on top of ham, securing them with toothpicks. Reserve one pineapple slice. Place a cherry in the center of each pineapple slice and secure it with a toothpick. Cover the ham with foil and follow the package instructions for baking. Remove ham from the oven about 30 minutes before the end of baking time. Remove foil and pineapple slices.

Combine brown sugar and just enough of the reserved pineapple juice to make a thick glaze. Chop the remaining pineapple slice into small pieces and add to glaze. Spoon the glaze over the ham and bake, uncovered, for the remaining 30 minutes.

Hams are usually salty, so there’s no need to baste the ham. The fat and drippings should remain at the bottom of the pan. It will be juicy without them and will taste better without that extra salt.

From the scriptures

Spiritual food is essential for all of us, as well as physical food. We enjoy two or three meals every day. We should nourish our mind and feed our spirit daily just as we feed our body. Bible verses are fabulous spiritual food. We should look forward to reading our Bible daily; just one verse of scripture each day would help feed our spirit.

Our Bible verse for this week is Philippians 1:29 (KJV): “For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake.”