From A Past Edition Of The New Orleans Menu Daily By Tom Fitzmorris Root Beer-Glazed Baked Ham This is without a doubt the most asked-for recipe in the history of my radio show. Demand for it rises during the holidays, but never goes away completely. The root beer-glazed ham is a fixture on my table on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. It's in the oven all morning (good thing my turkey is usually out on the grill!), and it makes the whole house smell good. You'll find that lots of your guests will fight over the black crusty parts of the ham. (And all the rest of it, too.) If you live in New Orleans, I strongly urge you to buy the superb Chisesi ham for this. It's widely available at supermarkets, usually in the deli department. Otherwise, a top-quality, lean, naturally-smoked boneless ham is what you want. One more thing: The drippings get so crusty in the pan that you'll want to use a disposable pan to bake the ham. The stuff is very hard to dislodge. Glaze: 24 oz. (two cans) Barq's root beer 1 1/2 Tbs. pepper jelly 1 bay leaf 1 1/2 Tbs. Tabasco Caribbean style steak sauce (or Pickapeppa) 6 cloves 1 stick cinnamon Peel and juice of one-half an orange Peel of half a lemon 1 cured, smoked ham, 5-10 pounds 1/2 tsp. dry mustard 3/4 cup dark brown sugar 1. I usually make the glaze the  night before, so I can get the ham right into the oven in the morning. Combine all the glaze ingredients in a saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower to a simmer, and cook for about a half-hour. Strain the pan contents and discard the solids. Reduce the liquid to about a half-cup. Refrigerate if you do this in advance. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 2. Place the ham on a rack in a disposable aluminum pan. Cut shallow gashes in a criss-cross pattern across the top half. Spoon the glaze over the ham to completely wet the surface. 3. Combine the brown sugar and the dry mustard and pat it all over the ham. Pour a half-cup of water into the pan. Put the ham in the oven at 350 degrees. 4. Spoon some of the glaze over the top of the ham at 15-minute intervals until it's all used up. Try to get some glaze on all parts of the ham. Add more water to the pan when it dries up. 5. Continue baking until the ham reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees on a meat thermometer. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for a half-hour before carving. Serves twenty to thirty, with leftovers. Click here for an index of recipes from past editions. © 2008 Tom Fitzmorris. All rights reserved. news@nomenu.com