Cranberry Glazed Ham and Thankfulness

Now this may seem a little early for some of you but the Canadians had their Thanksgiving a few days ago so it's time to break out the cranberries and sauce my friends and go to town on some yummy comfort meals.

Ham is a favorite of my hubby and my dad. They love the stuff. Me I'm more of a ham and cheese kind of gal but I love cranberry sauce. My step-mom eats the stuff all year. For real. It will be the middle of Summer and she's chowing down on it.

A few years ago I lost my mom, my grandma and my brother all within a year and a half of each other. Along with that our house burned down and we had a failed adoption. 

To say it was miserable would have put it mildly. There were times I didn't want to get off the couch I could just lay there and the days and the nights run together. 

I got it together for the first funeral but it was a miserable Christmas Day. I made all the trimmings and it snowed and not one of us wanted to eat.

Shortly after a sweet little boy and a teenager came to stay with us and that along with our move to the country pulled me out of my funk.

Is my heart still broken? Yes. The holidays are very hard for me. We said good-bye to 2 of our dogs in the past few weeks.

Now though I have a different outlook. I stop, I cry and I'm thankful. I'm thankful for the time God has given me with them and I'm thankful they are with him and I will see them again.

They are no longer in pain or confined.

So, now I'm going to celebrate for every holiday I'm going to live life to the fullest. It won't ever be the same without them but there are still many good times to have. So, I'm going to make my crew their favorite cranberry sauce and ham and enjoy the holiday season.

Now onto the Cranberry Glazed Ham

Ingredients

1 package of fresh cranberries

1 ham cooked or uncooked. I prefer cooked because half the battle is won

1 c. sugar

Step #1 Open your cranberry package and rinse them in a strainer.

   Step #2 Take a big pot of water and add the cranberries and set it on the stove on high to boil.

Step #3 Listen for the cranberries to pop. Once they all pop it means they are done.

Step #4 Drain the water off the cranberries in a strainer.

Step #5 Add 1 cup of sugar to the cranberries and mix it all up. The sugar should dissolve and the cranberries will mash with the stirring.

Now here is where you can make a decision. Sometimes it's fun to add orange zest or a bit of Orange Essential Oil Food Grade.

My crew will like it one time and the next plain. I would recommend about 1 tsp. of Orange Zest and then a few drops of the oil.

Your sauce should look like this when you are done stirring.

Now I like to pre slice my ham so it's ready for serving when it comes out of the oven. You can leave yours whole do what you really like. 

Step #6 Pour the Cranberry Glaze over it and cook at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Enjoy

One last note I often times add about 3/4's teaspoon of Ground Cloves. I like spice and Cloves are spicy to some people but it is optional and the smell is out of this world.

So I do pray you sit down with your friends and family whether it's 1 or 10 and have a great conversation and a good meal and be grateful for the people you have.

Some of my good friends also want to share with you what they are thankful for please go by and and say hello.

Curbside Overhaul

Little Sprouts Learning

Everchange Productions

Hello Daycare

Tapestry Chronicles

Sharing with Met Monday Show and Share

Happy Eating,

Valerie