Honey Glazed Ham

It has become a Christmas tradition (when we are at home with an oven to use) to honey glaze a beautiful smoked ham, either a half or a whole leg. The leftovers make a necessary addition to the camp fridge when we head off on our summer road trip. I am thankful for my lovely friends farmer Greg and Lauren Newell from Linga Longa Farm, who supply us with their delicious smoked leg of ham at our local farmers market, The Beaches Market.

GF
what you need
1 whole leg ham, smoked (approx. 8kg)
whole cloves to stud

glaze:
2 cups (500ml) freshly squeezed orange juice
½ cup (125ml) honey
½ cup (110g) marmalade
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
½ tsp ground nutmeg

what you do
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan forced) and line a large baking dish with a layer of non-stick baking paper. Place an oven shelf in the lowest position and remove all other shelves.
2. To make the glaze combine all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until mixture has reduced by half and thickened to a syrupy consistency.
3. Meanwhile, using a small sharp knife cut through the rind around the shank of the ham, about 10cm from the end. Run the knife under the rind around the edge of the ham then gently lift off by running your fingers between the rind and the fat. Discard. Trim the fat as desired, still leaving a generous covering all over the meat. Use the knife to score the remaining fat in a diamond pattern, about 5mm deep. Transfer the leg ham to the prepared baking dish.
4. Brush half the glaze over the ham. Stud the centre of the diamonds with cloves. Bake for 30 minutes. Brush with the remaining half of the glaze and bake for a further 30 minutes. Finally, brush with the glaze residue at the base of the baking dish and bake for a final 15 minutes.
5. Remove from the oven. If there is residual liquid in the base of the pan, pour over ham just before serving or storing.

Note: I usually glaze my ham a couple of days before Christmas and keep it in the fridge. Prior to slicing and serving I bring it to room temperature and reheat the glazed ham in the oven for 45 minutes at 180°C (160°C fan forced). I find not only does this reduce the stress of glazing on the day, it also delivers a greater depth of flavour. 

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