Hello, friends.
So, Christmas is
now dangerously close. Unfortunately, final exams are even closer which
seriously bums me out. I’m tired of being a student of higher education. I just
want to bake and sleep through my responsibilities. Ugh! Why is being an adult
so hard?! Okay, rant over. That’s right, today marks
the start of final exam week for me. Luckily, I don’t have any tests
until later in the week which gives me ample
time to study as well as procrastinate by baking. During final exam week, I
enjoy gathering together with friends, getting in the kitchen and making some
delicious food, and sitting down together to eat, converse (and study). For the
holidays or a weekend night study session, one of the great lessons of hosting
I’ve learned from Momma Crawford is to
make it simple. You want a dish that tastes delicious but doesn’t take an
arm and a leg to make, especially during this stressful time of the year.
Luckily, I’ve teamed up with JORD Wood Watches
to share with you some of my culinary tips for hosting and/or attending a
holiday gathering this season (and how to look good while doing it!)
P.s. Be sure to
the read to the end of this post for an exclusive $25 e-giftcard you can use to get
either my watch or any other style
of watch from JORD.
Photo by Sarah Elizabeth Huff
Photo by Adrianne Herold
Photo by Adrianne Herold
Photo by Sarah Elizabeth Huff
Hosting a Holiday Gathering
So, you’ve been given the task of hosting Christmas dinner…and that means making the ham. Stop hyperventilating in the corner and listen up because I have a delicious and incredibly easy glazed ham recipe that is going to blow your mind. When hosting any sized gathering, it is important to plan, plan, PLAN! I’m a visual person, so what I like to do is draw out a little “map” of times and steps I have to take to get the dinner on the table. For example, I always make my dessert first, then prep the entrée, then work on the sides and appetizers. Efficient use of time is of the essence. I would go into more depth on hosting with tips and tricks, but I have a collaboration coming out in 2017 with Momma Crawford about hosting a dinner party (so stay tuned for that!).
Around Christmas time, I am a fan of the ham. It’s easy to work with and with minimal effort it’s going to taste and look amazing. I stand by the people who glaze their hams. If you are one of those crazy human beings who don’t, I have no words for you. You need to glaze your ham! The number of flavors and complex tastes you are going to get from spreading on a simple glaze over the ham is going to leave your speechless and heading back for seconds. When developing this glaze, I wanted to incorporate whiskey into the mix. I just think whiskey baked does something amazing to food. I’ve used it before in a pie and now a ham and both are fabulous. You get this smoky, sweet, and slightly spicy taste from the glaze. It’s this trio of flavors coming together and creating this beautiful catalytic symphony of flavors.
Whiskey Brown Sugar Glazed Ham
Recipe adapted from Food Wishes
Ingredients
A bunch of whole allspice
7 to 9-pound
bone-in ham
1 cup light brown
sugar, tightly packed
¼ cup honey
2 tablespoons
Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons
whiskey
Pinch of paprika
1 ½ teaspoon
ground black pepper
½ teaspoon
Worcestershire sauce
2-3 dashes of
aromatic bitters
Directions
Preheat the oven
to 325 F. In the bottom of a roasting pan with a rack, add in the water (just
enough to cover the bottom of the pan completely) and the whole allspice. Place
the ham on top of the rack and pat it dry with a paper towel. Take a chef’s
knife and make horizontal and vertical cuts, ¼ inch deep and ½ inch apart, all
around the ham. This will help the glaze penetrate deep into the meat. Bake the
ham for 20 minutes before glazing.
In a medium mixing
bowl, add in the brown sugar, honey, Dijon, whiskey, paprika, black pepper, Worcestershire
sauce, and aromatic bitters and mix until combined. This is going to be a super
thick glaze, so don’t be startled by that!
Take the ham out
of the oven and begin to evenly glaze the entire ham. Bake for another 20
minutes, glazing each time until you
reach an internal temperature of 135 F. Note: Mine took about 80 minutes in total.
My personal ham roasting breakdown
20 minutes’ bake (no glaze)
Glaze 1
20 minutes’ bake
Glaze 2 (covered top loosely with aluminum
foil to prevent burning)
20 minutes’ bake
Glaze 3 (still covered with foil)
20 minutes’ bake, until finished
Attending a Holiday Gathering
From office
parties to an ugly sweater party with friends, holiday get-togethers are fun,
enjoyable events. When I attend a Christmas party, I want to bring a baked good
to show my appreciation and to share my food with the people I love. I tend to
go in either two directions: cookies or bread. I usually lean more towards
bread due to its versatile factor (much
like my JORD watch! Was that a
killer segway or what?!). There is something so special about bringing a loaf of freshly baked bread to the party. With your loaf of bread, you have
endless options of toppings and spreads. You could go traditional bread and butter, make a savory pesto spread, perhaps break out the cookie butter, or even present a jar of sweet spiced
apple butter. The options are endless, much like what you can wear with this watch! With this watch, you can wear anything
from a casual look (ie. a festive plaid shirt) to a more formal look (ie. a
super warm, festive sweater). The wood finish is stunning yet subtle with
colors you can wear with practically anything.
Photo by Sarah Elizabeth Huff
Photo by Adrianne Herold
Photo by Adrianne Herold
Photo by Adrianne Herold
French Country Rye Bread
Recipe
adapted from All Recipes
Ingredients
For
the starter
¼ teaspoon active
dry yeast
½ cup warm water
¾ cup bread flour
For
the bread
1 teaspoon active
dry yeast
1 cup warm water
½ cup rye flour
1 ½ cups bread
flour
1 teaspoon salt
Directions
For the starter. Note: you want to do this step the night
before you are going to be baking the bread. In a medium sized non-metal mixing
bowl, dissolve the active dry yeast into the warm water. Add the bread flour
and mix well (it’s being to be thick). Cover and allow to sit overnight at room
temperature.
For the bread. In a large mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast
in the warm water. Add the starter mixture, the rye flour, bread flour and the
salt, stirring until well combined. When the dough has pulled together, turn it
out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8
minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat
with oil. Cover with a slightly damp cloth and allow to rise in a warm place
until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
Grease one 9x5
inch loaf pans. Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured
surface and form it into a loaf. Place the loaf into the prepared pans. Cover
the dough with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 45
minutes. With 10 minutes before the dough is done proofing, preheat the oven to
425 degrees F.
Bake in the
preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the
bottom of the loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Allow to cool slightly before
slicing.
Last weekend, fellow photographers and good friends Sarah and Adrianne joined me for a snowy afternoon photo shoot at Allerton Park. When we arrived, the snow had been falling for a little over an hour so the entire park was covered in a beautiful blanket of white. We trudged all throughout the park’s grounds, taking photos of the winter wonderland before us, and laughing all way. Once our feet were chilled to the bone, we made our way inside the parks visitors center where a quaint little wooden table with two chairs sat next to an open window. We decided to warm up with some coffee, rye bread, and apple butter. It was such an enjoyable time. I love being able to work, collaborate, and be friends with such talented creatives. We photographed all afternoon in the snow and being that this watch is water resistant it held up beautifully in the elements. I was really impressed! Before I knew it, I looked down to check the time and it had been four hours. Time really does fly when you're having fun!
Photo by Adrianne Herold
Slow Cooker Brandy Apple Butter
Recipe
adapted from All Recipes
Ingredients
6 pounds Honeycrisp apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
¾ cup apple cider
¼ cup brandy
1 ½ cups white
sugar
½ cup brown sugar
½ tablespoon + ½
teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground
allspice
¼ teaspoon ground
nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon
ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon
ground cardamom
Directions
Place the apples,
apple cider, and brandy into a large slow cooker and place the lid on top. Set
slow cooker to high and cook for 8 hours, then turn it to low, and continue
cooking for 10 hours more. Note: I started mine at night before I went to bed
so when I woke up I just turned it down to low.
After 18 hours,
stir in white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, and
cardamom, and cook 4 hours more until done. Transfer into airtight containers
and store in the fridge before serving.
Huge thanks to JORD Watches for sponsoring this post and for the beautiful watch. Be sure to share your baking creations with the hashtag #TKbakes. And as always, all opinions, ramblings, stories, and recipe/adaptations are my own.
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