I didn't serve ham for Easter, since my Easter plans went rather awry. So I baked the ham a few days later for Jeremy, his buddy Mitch, and their friend Anna who's now sharing lead vocals with Jeremy in their band. (For a sample of their music, go to this site: 90 Miles From Vegas.)
Feeding the band is a long-cherished tradition here, and it had been ages since I'd had the privilege. Band members started focusing on school, schedules conflicted, kids moved up north ... they all grew up and life went on. Jeremy still hung out with his friends, but it was much quieter and less festive.
Most parents cringe at the noise of band practice; and I admit, it has been a few years since Jeremy and his buddies played here ... either they got louder or I got older, preferably the former! But I'd still rather have them tinkering around with grunge pedals and screeching guitars here, at my place, even if I often wonder when the neighbors will start banging on the door. (To their credit, they've complimented Jeremy on his music!)
I've missed having hungry kids to feed when they take a break from practice. I've missed having ready guinea pigs who happily devour whatever I prepare for them.
I've missed having kids hanging out in my basement, playing music and following their dreams.
Root Beer-Basted Ham
1 2.5-ounce honey cured ham, boneless, sliced
1/2 cup root beer
1/4 cup barbecue sauce
1 tablespoon brown mustard
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper sauce
juice of 1 small orange
Preheat oven to 400F. Place ham into an 8"x8" baking dish.
Place remaining ingredients into a small saucepan; bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. Pour sauce over ham, cover dish with foil, and bake for 20 minutes.
Uncover, then baste ham with sauce; bake for 10 more minutes. Baste again, then bake for 10 more minutes.
Serves 8.
Ooooohhh.. root beer basted ham! Now THAT is a ham I could truly enjoy!!
ReplyDeleteLove the music - next time Chris has a battle of the bands thing I'll let you know.. maybe Jeremy can enter a song???
This sounds great. I love the idea of adding root beer! And we have our own brewer right here in our little village.
ReplyDeleteIt truly is much more fun to cook for a crew than for one or two, isn't it. And isn't it nice to have live music played. I was going to say, 'Too bad these kids grow up and move on.' but that's not really true. We want them to become adults and independent, don't we. Ah, nostalgia.
The happy sounds of a house full of happiness and friends :) Music to a Mom's ears, right? The ham looks great! I've never had a root beer basted ham and that bums me out. I love ham. I love root beer. Matching the 2 seems like a delicious prospect!
ReplyDeleteI've missed lunch and now I'm drooling on my keyboard, Mary! Next to chicken, my favorite is definitely ham. Yummm! I've done cola hams before, but never a root beer version... I'm also a huge root beer fan, so this sounds totally scrumptious!
ReplyDeleteMy sister-in-law is going through a bit of an empty nest-ish phase. Her two boys bought a house together and now they and all of their techie/geek/gamer friends are no longer around to eagerly devour the huge feasts that she used to prepare for them. She's not quite sure what to do with herself. I told her that she'll probably just get the hang of it and they'll move back. LOL Hope that all is well with you, my dear and that you have a truly lovely week! XOXO M.
What a great idea to use root beer with ham! My daughter in law recently told me that she made a pork loin using root beer. It sounds delicious! I think it's wonderful that you can share your food with these kids as they are pursuing their dreams. I know they are loving it and I know you are too. I listened to their music. They sound great!!
ReplyDeleteThat sounds great! Thank You for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI used to agree with the saying "If the music is too loud, you're too old".
ReplyDeleteThen rap music came out, lol.
The ham sounds excellent, I've had some versions close to that.