Easter Recipe from the Inwood Farm Market

Happy Easter from Faye, Linda and Kathy at the Inwood Farm Market. Here's a recipe to prepare for your holiday gathering using West Virginia's own Up The Creek Mustard. Don't forget to pick up your favorite WV wine suggested at the end of the recipe to complete your meal.

Glazed Ham with Pineapple Mustard Sauce

Ingredients

• Vegetable oil for greasing pan

• 1 (8- to 10-pound) partially cooked smoked shank-end ham

• 3 Cups unsweetened pineapple juice (24 fl ounces)

• 1 tablespoon sugar

• 3/4 Cup Up The Creek Original Mustard (7 ounces)

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

• 1 Tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves

• Garnish: sprigs of fresh thyme

Preparation

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 325°F. Oil a large roasting pan.

If ham comes wrapped in plastic, rinse ham and pat dry. Cut away and discard any thick skin with a sharp paring knife, leaving a 1-inch band around shank end, then cut away all but about an 1/8-inch layer of fat where possible. Put ham, cut side down, in roasting pan. Pour 3/4 cup pineapple juice around ham and cover pan tightly with foil, then bake 1 hour.

While ham is baking, combine sugar and remaining 2 1/4 cups pineapple juice in a 1 1/2- to 2-quart heavy saucepan and gently boil, stirring occasionally, until reduced to 3/4 cup, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer pineapple syrup to a bowl and cool 5 minutes. Whisk in mustard, salt, and pepper, then pour 1/2 cup into a small bowl and stir in thyme. Reserve remaining mustard mixture for serving.

Discard foil from pan and brush ham with thyme mustard mixture, then bake, basting with pan juices occasionally, until thermometer inserted into center of meat (do not touch bone) registers 145 to 150°F, 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours. If pan juices evaporate during baking, add 1/2 cup water. Transfer ham to a platter, discarding pan juices, and let stand, uncovered, 15 to 30 minutes before slicing. Serve ham with reserved mustard mixture on the side.

Makes 10 servings. Active time: 35 minutes; 3 ¾ hours total preparation time.

Wine pairing available at the Market: Riesling’s from Forks of Cheat, Vu ja de, Potomac Highlands, Lambert’s and Wine Tree wineries.

Cranberry Popcorn Balls

CRANBERRY POPCORN BALLS

Yield: 18 balls

Ingredients

• 2 cups sugar

• 1 cup whole berry cranberry sauce, slightly mashed

• 1 tablespoon grated orange peel

• 1/2 cup cranberry juice

• 1/2 cup light corn syrup

• 1 teaspoon vinegar

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 5 quarts unsalted popped popcorn

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients, except popcorn, in a heavy saucepan.

2. Bring to a boil; lower heat and cook to 250 degrees Fahrenheit on a candy thermometer.

3. Mixture will bubble up in pan, so watch to keep from boiling over.

4. Pour slowly onto hot popcorn and mix until well-coated.

5. Let stand 5 minutes or until mixture can easily be formed into balls.

6. Butter hands and form into 3-inch balls.

Cranberry-Orange Caramel Corn

CRANBERRY-ORANGE CARAMEL CORN

Yield: 10 cups

Ingredients

• 10 cups popped popcorn

• 1 cup dried cranberries

• 1/2 cup whole almonds

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

• 1/2 packed brown sugar

• 1/4 cup corn syrup

• 2 tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate, undiluted

• 1 teaspoon orange or vanilla extract

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Place popcorn, cranberries and almonds in a large bowl; set aside.

2. In a medium saucepan heat butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and orange juice concentrate over medium heat until butter is melted. Bring to a boil and boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in extract and baking soda (mixture will foam).

3. Pour syrup mixture over popcorn mixture in bowl; stir to coat well. Spread evenly in a large, rimmed baking sheet or roasting pan, lined with foil and sprayed with nonstick spray. Bake 30 minutes, stirring twice during baking time. Stir caramel corn as it cools on baking sheet. Store in an airtight container.

Honey Pumpkin Pie

HONEY PUMPKIN PIE

3 eggs
1 pastry for single 9-inch pie crust
3/4 cup West Virginia honey
1 can (15 oz) canned pumpkin
1 cup evaporated milk
2 Tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In a medium bowl, beat eggs. Brush one teaspoon beaten egg on inside of pie crust. Place crust on a cookie sheet and bake for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, add the rest of the ingredients to remaining beaten eggs and whisk to combine. Remove pie crust from oven and carefully pour honey pumpkin mixture into hot crust; bake 5 minutes more at 425 degrees F. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F and bake 30 to 40 minutes more, until filling is set. Cool completely and serve with Honey Whipped Cream (see below).

HONEY WHIPPED CREAM

1 cup whipping cream
3 Tablespoons West Virginia honey
1 teaspoon vanilla

Beat whipping cream until mixture thickens; gradually add honey and beat until soft peaks form. Fold in vanilla.

Gingersnap Popcorn Snack Mix

Gingersnap Popcorn Snack Mix

2 quarts West Virginia popped popcorn
Butter flavored cooking spray
1/3 cup granulated sugar substitute
2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black or white pepper

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Spread popcorn on baking sheet and spray lightly with the cooking spray. Combine remaining ingredients in a small bowl and sprinkle evenly over popcorn. Spray again with cooking spray and toss to coat evenly. Bake 7 minutes and serve warm.

May 26-National Cherry Dessert Day

It's National Cherry Dessert Day.

Grown in West Virginia and a favorite at several of our orchards, cherries are delicious as a snack or baked into your favorite recipe.

Did you know that cherries---
          Are high in antioxidants?
          Are a great source of beta carotene?
         Are rich in Vitamin C and Vitamin E?
         Should be bought when they are dark in color and plump.  
         Sour cherries should be a true red color.
         The stems should be attached and avoid any with brown spots.
         Bing cherries, or the sweet cherry, are available in late spring.
         Sour cherries are available in June-July.

Cherries are available at your local West Virginia farmers market or farm stand. Celebrate Memorial Day with a cool, cherry dessert favorite. Here's a recipe for Red White & Blue Trifle (http://busycooks.about.com/od/dessertrecipe1/r/redwhitebtrifle.htm)

Ingredients:


•1-1/2 cups cold whole milk

•4 serving size pkg. cheesecake flavor instant pudding mix

•8 oz. container frozen whipped topping, thawed

•1 frozen loaf pound cake, thawed

•2 cups pitted cherries (can substitute sliced strawberries)

•1 cup blueberries

•1 cup sliced bananas

•1 cup raspberries

•1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Preparation:

In medium bowl, combine milk and pudding mix and beat with egg beater for 1-2 minutes until smooth. Fold in the thawed whipped topping. Cut the thawed pound cake into 1/2" cubes. In large glass bowl, layer 1/2 of the cake cubes, 1/2 of the fruit, and 1/2 of the pudding mixture. Repeat layers. Chill at least 2 hours before serving. Sprinkle with toasted almonds. Serves 12

PS: You can also get local West Virginia raspberries and blueberries at the market.

May Is.......National Asparagus Month

Garden's are beginning to sprout new crops and offer more choices in the grocery store. May brings the spring flowers from April rains and a dinnertime favorite, asparagus. The month of May is home to many food celebrations and we'll explore them throughout the month especially as West Virginia farms start bringing more and more produce to the market.

In the April 30, 2001 Charleston Gazette newspaper, writer Sara Busse and photographer Chris Dorst wandered over to the Ware Farm in West Hamlin. What they found were three acres of asparagus and harvest in full swing. Read the article here and plan to visit the farm to get the perfect dinner vegetable, pick some up at Forth Food Fair or The Purple Onion at Capitol Market, or order them at your favorite restaurants, Huntington Prime and Jewel City Seafood.

Let's explore this early season crop....did you know:

• Asparagus is a member of the Lily family
• Asparagus spears grow from a crown that is planted about a foot deep in sandy soils
• It takes three years before the plant is ready to be harvested for the first time
• Under ideal conditions, an asparagus spear can grow 10" in a 24-hour period; some fields need to be picked every 24 hours
• A well cared for asparagus planting will generally produce for about 15 years without being replanted.
• Asparagus is healthy--high in folic acid, a good source of potassium, fiber, Vitamin B6, Vitamins A & C and thiamin; no fat, no cholesterol and low in sodium

Try this easy way to prepare asparagus and enjoy the garden!

• 3 Tablespoons butter or margarine
• 1 bunch fresh asparagus
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped

Melt the butter or margarine in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and asparagus spears; cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until asparagus is tender. If you like your asparagus well done, reduce heat and cook an additional 10 minutes.