Hamming It Up

Hamming it up, as in elevating ham leftovers. Let's be honest, after you've cooked a ham, enjoyed it as a family lunch with potato salad, green beans and macaroni and cheese, you've done what you can do with that ham. Next, you remove the meat from the bone. You can freeze the bone to use in seasoning black-eyed peas or split pea soup, but what will you do with the rest of the meat? I love ham sandwiches, and I'll have one--maybe two--but then I have to put my foot down. Now what? Here's what. Click for an easy recipe that elevates your ham after Easter, Christmas or any special occasion when you cook too much of a delicious thing.

My friend Angela was raised in a small Southern town, and learned to cook the traditional food of the South still honored today. Angela has also traveled widely, and she's developed a palate that's open to a wide range of flavors and combinations. She has learned to adapt. Following her traditional Southern Easter feast this year, she shared her ham salad recipe with me. She actually made it and gave me some. It was a little different with a nice crunch, and the presentation in phyllo cups added to the overall experience. While she uses her ham salad in a sandwich, her favorite way is to serve it in phyllo cups/shells. She pulls them straight out of the freezer, places on a pan and directly into a preheated 400°F oven. She pulls them out four minutes later and fills them with the ham salad. The cups are so thin that they're cool enough to use within a couple of minutes.

A wonderful addition to a proper afternoon tea.

Angela showing a friend how to cook grits using stone ground grits from
Nora Mill in Helen, Georgia.

Angela dropped by my kitchen recently to show me exactly how she prepared this delicious and ever-so-easy treat. Here's the recipe. Please use the photos below to assist you in assembly. Angela's ham salad would be a welcome addition to a luncheon plate and a beautiful treat for any proper afternoon tea. It would also pair well with the beverage of choice at a cocktail party

Process ham until it's like coarse breadcrumbs, not a paste.

Radicchio and arugula, sliced avocado, all
dressed with a drizzle of white wine vinegar and good olive oil are
topped with a generous scoop of ham salad.