Christmas is the feast commemorating the birth of Christ. It is fixed in the liturgical year as December 25th and is preceded by four week of fasting called Advent.Holiday Baked Ham
- 1 bone-in smoked ham (8 ½ lbs.)
- 1 can (20 oz.) sliced pineapple in syrup
- 1 cup apricot preserves
- 1 tsp. dry mustard
- ½ tsp. ground all spice
- Whole cloves
- Maraschino cherries
Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Remove rind from ham. Place the ham on a rack in open roasting pan, fat side up. Insert meat thermometer with bulb in thickest part away from fat or the bone. Roast ham in oven for about 3 hours.
Drain pineapple, reserving the liquid. In a small saucepan, combine syrup, preserves, mustard and allspice. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes. Remove the ham from the oven, but keep oven hot. Stud ham with cloves; brush with glaze. Using wooden picks, secure pineapple and cherries to ham. Brush again with the glaze. Return the ham to the oven. Roast for 30 minutes longer or until thermometer registers 160 degrees (about 25 minutes per pound total cooking time). Brush with glaze 15 minutes before ham is done. Let the ham stand for 20 minutes before slicing.
