ham cassarole

In this week's column we are cooking a ham and eking three meals out of it before the bone is picked clean.

Ham, Ham Casserole, Ham and Bean Soup and Scalloped Potatoes, just because they are delish.

Here's our recipe for Ham Casserole.



First, heat a quart of light cream in the nuker for about 4 minutes, just until hot, not boiling.

Mince one medium sized onion:

Melt a stick of butter in a large heavy saucepan or skillet over medium heat:

Add the minced onion and simmer until onion is limp but not brown. Give it a stir or two.

Add 1/3rd cup flour and whisk to combine with the butter.

Cook for two minutes, whisking almost constantly.
Add the heated cream all at once:

Stir until there are no lumps.
Let mixture come to a boil and continue whisking until mixture is thick, about 2 minutes.
Add a tablespoon or so of dijon mustard:

Take 5 small red potatoes and slice thinly.
Put in a pot of salted water and bring to a boil. Cook until nearly done, approximately 5 minutes.

Try not to overcook the potatoes because they will cook some more in the casserole.

Drain the potatoes and scatter them in the bottom of a 10x13 baking pan or casserole dish.

Rinse a 15 ounce bag of frozen pearl onions and a 15 ounce bag of frozen peas and carrots under hot water to partially defrost. Add the veggies and two cups of chopped ham to the casserole dish:

Smooth all of the cream sauce over the vegetables and ham.
Cover with a sheet of foil and place on a cookie sheet.
Bake at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, until the whole thing is bubbly:

Remove the foil....

Add enough refrigerator biscuits to cover the top, approximately 1 and 1/2 packages.
Don't worry if there are openings between the biscuits.

Brush the biscuits with beaten egg, if desired. Totally not necessary, but it makes the biscuits shiny and brown and gorge.

Put the casserole back in the oven (uncovered) for about 20 minutes until the biscuits are brown and cooked through.

Easily serves 8 pigs. I was planning on serving this tonight for dinner, but it was decimated at 10:30 by the two starving teens.