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One Deal, Five Meals: Spiral Ham

I think usually due to size, hams are often reserved for holidays and family get-togethers. However, there's no reason why ham needs to take a backseat to chicken breasts and ground beef on your family's dinner menu. Ham can be the perfect answer to your budgeting woes and can be incorporated into a variety of different meals throughout a week or two.

When my husband and I first got married we lived off an incredibly tight budget. We soon had two kids, and he was in graduate school, me supporting the entire family off my newfound self-employment. It was after a holiday that we discovered ham, drastically cut in price, and decided to toss the large piece of meat into our cart.

Realizing I was going to have a lot of ham on my hands once we roasted our prize, I instantly started thinking of different ways to incorporate the ham as our family's protein source in several different style meals so that we ate all of it without getting hammed out.

Ham and Cheese Croissants

1 can croissant dough (8 rolls)
6 ounces fully-cooked leftover spiral ham
4 ounces Swiss cheese
1 tablespoon fresh tarragon or thyme, minced

Instructions

Separate the croissant dough triangles. At the thick portion of each one distribute the ham, cheese and herbs evenly. Roll from the thick side to the thin. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes until dough is golden brown. Makes 8 croisssants.

Ham and Pear Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

4 cups spring mix
6 ounces leftover spiral ham, diced
1 can pears or 1 fresh pear, sliced
¼ cup walnuts
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 clove garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

Layer spring mix, ham, pears and walnuts. In a separate container mix together all vinaigrette ingredients except for the oil. Whisk in the oil and serve, pouring desired amount over salad.

Tortellini Salad

adapted from Hoosier Homemade

9 ounces frozen tortellini
1 cup diced spiral ham
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 cup carrots, shredded
15 ounces kidney beans, cooked/canned
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons fresh oregano, minced
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper

Instructions

Cook tortellini according to package directions. Rinse and refrigerate until cool. Mix together tortellini, ham, pepper, carrots and kidney beans. Set aside. In a separate bowl mix together white wine vinegar, garlic and oregano. Pouring slowly, whisk in olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Toss the dressing with the pasta salad. Allow to sit for 20 minutes in refrigerator for flavors to blend together. Serve.

Baked Eggs

6 eggs
12 slices spiral ham
6 tablespoons cream
fresh herbs
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
black pepper

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees with a small, shallow pan of water on the very bottom rack. Grease 6 ramekins with butter or oil. Line the bottom of each ramekin with two pieces of ham each. Crack the eggs into the well in the center of the ham. Pour one tablespoon of cream over each egg. Place the ramekins in a pan and then onto the middle rack of the oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes until egg white is cooked but yolk is still runny. Remove from oven, top with a sprinkle of cheese and a dash of black pepper. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Hawaiian Pizza

1 pizza crust or homemade pizza dough
1/2 cup pizza sauce
6 ounces leftover spiral ham, diced
6 ounces pineapple, thinly sliced/diced
8 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
4 ounces fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced

Instructions

Spread a thin layer of sauce onto the crust (prebaked if using homemade). Sprinkle ham and pineapple across the sauce and top with cheddar cheese and mozzarella slices. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes until cheese starts to lightly brown.

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