Glazed Ham and Roasted Pears

Servings: 10 Total time: 2hr. 45min.
Ingredients: 

1 Spiral Ham, about 10 pounds

6 pears, semi firm, washed, cut in half, cored (To avoid fruit from turning brown, cut just before taking the ham out to glaze)

For the Glaze:

2 cups pear juice (not from canned pears)

1/2 cup honey

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Making It:

1. Step 1Take out the ham from the refrigerator. Remove all packaging and allow to sit at room temperature for at least a half an hour. Preheat the oven to 325F.
2. Step 2Place two long piece of foil in a roasting pan in a crisscross pattern. Lay ham, cut side down in the middle of the foil and wrap. If needed, add more foil to fully cover the ham. Heat the ham covered for one and a half hours to two hours or until an internal thermometer reads 140F.
3. Step 3In a small pot, add all ingredients for the glaze over medium heat. Allow to simmer, whisking often to avoid sticking. Reduced until it turns into a consistency similar to maple syrup.
4. Step 4After the ham comes up to temperature, remove the ham from the oven and increase heat to 400F. Fold back the foil, brush the glaze all over the ham, add pears around the base of the ham and drizzle with a little glaze. When the oven reaches temperature, return the ham uncovered.
5. Step 5After 15 minutes, add another coat of glaze and cook for another 15-25 minutes. The ham should look glossy and caramelized

Puff Pastry Christmas Trees

Serves: 8 Total time: 1hr. 30min.
Ingredients
1 package (17.3 ounces) Pepperidge Farm® Puff Pastry Sheets, thawed
1/3 cup vanilla pudding or Lemon curd
1/3 cup honey, warmed
as needed Green decorating sugar
8 raspberries or maraschino cherry halves
Making It

• 1 Heat the oven to 400°F.
• 2 Unfold 1 pastry sheet on lightly floured surface. Cut 4 stars of each size, using 3 star cookie cutters in graduated sizes. Repeat with the remaining pastry sheet. Place the 24 stars on baking sheets.
• 3 Bake for 10 minutes or until the pastries are golden brown. Remove them from the baking sheets and cool on a wire rack.
• 4 Top 1 large star pastry with about 1 teaspoon pudding. Top with 1 medium star pastry, turning the star so the points do not line up. Top with about 1 teaspoon pudding and place 1 small star pastry on top, turning it so the points do not line up. Repeat with the remaining star pastries, making 8 trees. Drizzle the trees with honey. Sprinkle with green sugar and top each with a raspberry.

Pumpkin Cannoli
Ingredients:

1. 1 cup confectioners' sugar
2. 3/4 cup canned pumpkin                                      
3. 4 ounces mascarpone cheese
4. 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
5. 1/4 cup instant vanilla pudding mix                    
6. 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice                    
7. 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream                    
8. 12 large cannoli shells                    
9. 1 tablespoon sprinkles, or as desired                    
10. 1 teaspoon confectioners' sugar for dusting

Making It:

1. Stir 1 cup confectioners' sugar, pumpkin, mascarpone cheese, ricotta cheese, pudding mix, and pumpkin pie spice together in a bowl until smooth.
2. Beat cream in a chilled bowl with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form; fold into pumpkin mixture. Spoon pumpkin mixture into a resealable plastic bag and snip a 3/4-inch hole in 1 corner. Pipe pumpkin mixture into each cannoli shell. Garnish the ends with sprinkles and confectioners' sugar

Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes with Butter and Toasted Marshmallows
Ingredients:

1.  1 tablespoon olive oil                                     
2.  4 sweet potatoes
3.  sea salt to taste                    
4.  1/4 cup unsalted butter                                          
5.  1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
6. 1/2 teaspoon salt                                             
7. 1 pinch cayenne pepper, or more to taste                                                         
8. 1 cup mini marshmallows  

Making It:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Rub olive oil onto the outside of each sweet potato and sprinkle sea salt over each. Arrange sweet potatoes on the prepared baking sheet.
3. Bake in the preheated oven until a sharp knife easily pierces the potato, 50 to 60 minutes. Cool sweet potatoes until easily handled, 10 to 15 minutes.
4. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat until solids begin to brown and smell nutty, 5 to 8 minutes.
5. Slice potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop insides into a large bowl. Add browned butter, cream cheese, 1/2 teaspoon salt, cayenne pepper, and black pepper and mash using a potato masher until smooth. Spoon mixture back into the sweet potato skins and top each with 1/4 cup marshmallows. Place sweet potatoes back onto the baking sheet.
6. Bake in the oven until warmed through and marshmallows are toasted, about 10 minutes.

Deep Fried Rosemary Turkey
Ingredients:
1.) 1 (12 pound) whole turkey, neck and giblets removed
2.) 1/2 cup minced garlic
3.) salt and ground black pepper to taste
4.) 3 gallons peanut oil for frying                                     
5.) 3 sprigs fresh rosemary                    

6.) 12 cloves garlic, peeled

7.) 1/2 cup chopped fresh ginger root

Making It:

Fill an outdoor deep-fryer with the peanut oil (see tip below), and heat to 325 degrees F (160 degrees C). This will take about 30 minutes.

1. Rub the turkey with minced garlic, salt and pepper on the inside and outside. Fill the cavity with rosemary, garlic cloves and ginger. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to marinate.
2. Remove the herbs and garlic from the cavity of the bird, and discard. Make sure the opening at the neck of the turkey is at least 2 inches wide. Trim skin back if necessary. This will prevent pressure from building inside. If the turkey has a pop-up doneness indicator, it must be removed beforehand.
3. Place the turkey in the fryer basket, or hanging device, and slowly lower it into the hot oil. Be sure to maintain the temperature of the oil while it is frying. Cook for 3 1/2 minutes per pound, or until the internal temperature is at 180 degrees F (82 degrees C) when taken in the thickest part of the thigh.
4. Carefully remove the turkey from the hot oil, and turn off the deep-fryer. Let the bird cool for 5 minutes, then pat dry.

 

Cranberry stuffed turkey breast

Ingredients:

1 cup chopped pecans

2 (8 ounce) packages dried, sweetened cranberries

2 tablespoons olive oil

6 lettuce leaves

1/2 cup pecan halves

Making It:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Prepare stuffing mix according to package directions. Set aside to cool. With a sharp knife, butterfly breasts open to lay flat. Place each breast between two sheets of waxed paper, and flatten with a mallet. Spread the prepared stuffing to within 1/4 inch of the edge of each breast. Sprinkle each one with chopped pecans and dried cranberries, reserving some of the cranberries for garnish. Roll up tightly in a jellyroll style, starting with the long end. Tuck in ends, and tie in sections with string, about 4 sections around the middle and one running the length of the roll to secure the ends.

Heat olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Carefully brown rolls on all sides. Place skillet in oven, uncovered. Bake in a preheated 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) oven for 1 hour, or until the internal temperature is at 170 degrees F (78 degrees C) when taken with a meat thermometer. Do not let these get overly dry. Allow rolls to set for 15 minutes before removing string, and slicing into 1/2 to 3/4 inch circles. Leave one roll whole, and slice the other for presentation. Stuffing will be spiraled into meat. Present on your prettiest platter on a bed of curly lettuce, and garnish by sprinkling with the remaining 1/2 cup pecan halves and the reserved dried cranberries.

 

Spaghetti Eyeballs

Spaghetti and Oozing Eyeballs

Prep Time: 20min. Total Time: 45min. Servings: 8 servings

What You Need:

2 lb. lean ground beef
1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken

1 cup water

2 eggs

1 jar (24 oz.) spaghetti sauce, divided

4 sticks KRAFT or POLLY-O Mozzarella String Cheese, cut into quarters

4 large pitted black olives, cut into 4 slices each

1 pkg. (1 lb.) spaghetti, uncooked

Make It:

Heat oven to 375ºF.

Mix meat, stuffing mix, water, eggs and 1/4 cup spaghetti sauce. Shape into 16 (2-inch) meatballs. Insert 1 cheese piece into top of each meatball, with end of cheese piece just showing at top. Place on baking sheet. Top each with olive slice to resemble eyeball.

Bake 20 to 25 min. or until meatballs are done (160ºF). Meanwhile, cook spaghetti as directed on package, omitting salt and heat remaining spaghetti sauce as directed on jar.

Drain spaghetti. Serve topped with meatballs and sauce.