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Monday, April 5, 2010

What Was I Thinking ?




It seemed like a good idea at the time. I was trying to get out of my 5 week slump and into the Easter Spirit. So I bought a HUGE ham. Huge. And no one but me and John for Easter dinner. I thought it would be nice for leftovers. Easter was yesterday and I am already tired of ham. What am I going to do with all that ham? My sister-in-law and best friend, Julie made pasta with meat sauce for Easter. I wondered about that move at the time. In the morning light..it looks like it was a good way to go. I never really liked having to deal with an enormous amount of leftover holiday meat. On Thanksgiving, I am tired of turkey before the day is over. So here I am faced with a HUGE ham...and I don't really even like ham.
I am still in that "licking my wounds phase". So I got our Betty Crocker for some comfort. Ham crouquettes with white sauce. Huh? Really? Should I do it? I remember an episode on" All In The Family" where Edith made ham crouquettes...and it did not go over very good there with Archie either.Are they really that bad? Can't it be a case of " everything old is new again?"
So I made them. I don't know how they will be. I just Cusinarted (is that a word) some ham with parsley from my garden, a little pepper and dijon and an egg...formed them into little circles and dipped them in panko bread crumbs. It said to let them sit a couple of hours before frying. How can anything fried be bad? We'll see.
Teddy Update: Made our room reservations today for Tuesday, April 20th. John and I are driving to Riverside, Ca ( NOT a vacation destination)...going to dinner and spending the night. Then we will get up Wednesday morning and travel the rest of the hour and a half into the desert to a town called Anza...kinda by Palm Springs. We are a LONG way from home. We will get Teddy and make the 7 or 8 hour ride home. We are so excited. I'll keep you updated. 2 weeks to go !

32 comments:

  1. Well darlin', that's what I call "hammin it up", tee-hee. I've had chicken and salmon croquettes and I'll just bet ham croquettes will be divine.

    Here comes Teddy....we all can hardly wait.

    Have a good evening.

    magnolia

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  2. I always loved chicken croquettes as a kid; I bet ham ones will be great, too!

    I'm with Magnolia--can't wait to meet Teddy.

    Hugs to you, my friend! Gigi

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  3. Oh, the dreaded left over ham. Ham & Cheese omelets, pea soup... blah blah blah blah blah. We did a roast beef this time around. It was good. :-)

    Anxiously awaiting Teddy pics!!

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  4. I do like ham but I'll cut the rest up to mix with dried beans, other dishes that do well with ham seasoning, slice it thin for sandwiches for the boys, put it in soups, etc.
    Of course, I have a huge upright freezer.

    I know uyou are excited about Teddy.

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  5. Yum, no really, yum. Bet they were delicious. We grilled an assortment of freshly made German sausages, served them with a dilled potato salad and cibatta rolls. Eastery, no! Delicious for sure.

    Excited to meet the little lamb.

    xoxo Jane

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  6. Now I have serious croquette envy.
    xx
    donkey in the pines

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  7. And I had to come back to remind you that you can freeze cooked ham. Don't despair, freeze!

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  8. I've never had ham croquettes, but they sound good. Ham freezes really well, so you could always freeze what you have left.

    Your trip to get Teddy sounds like fun. I'm excited for you!

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  9. dear kary,
    you made me laugh! send some of that ham my way, we didn't have a dinner this year and i'm already missing my split pea soup! i think i'm going to have to go and get one now.

    so excited about the teddy update. is his blanket all done? :)

    lots of love,
    lori

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  10. i agree with willoughby - i would freeze a good portion to pull out and make soups, etc later. i also bet it would make maybe a good casserole with some broccoli.

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  11. Can't wait till you meet your Teddy! ♥

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  12. A sweet hello from Frog Hollow Farm! I know what you mean about the ham - and there aren't any small hams in existence, are there? Can't wait to see photos of Teddy! Have a safe trip. Ciao, bella!

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  13. Well Kary...you need to come cook for my family...trust me there won't be any leftover ham : ) I bought a 12 pounder thinking it would be enough...(some family members couldn't make it) Every last bit was gone and they probably would have eaten more! I'm excited for you to get Teddy and I can't wait to see a pic. : )

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  14. Ham is so tasty...but I can see how you might get tired of it if you bought a large one with only 2 people to eat it. I agree with the folks that said freeze it. I'm interested to hear how the croquettes turned out.

    I'm really glad that you are doing better. I can't remember if I said anything in the posts about the loss of your sweet little dog, but I was so sad to hear of your loss. I'm excited to see more photos of Teddy though.

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  15. We are all anxiously waiting for little Teddy. Of course you'll bring your camera that day!
    Sorry I can't give you a recipe because we've never had ham leftovers except for sandwiches on rye bread w/spicy mustard.

    Love your sindboard pics.

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  16. You will have to tell us how they tasted.

    You must be so excited, soon you will have your Teddy, I remember when we went to get Crusoe, except we had not intended to get a puppy then and there, we only went to the breeder to look at the difference between, smooth and wire haired fox terriers, with a view to getting one in the future but you know how it is, Crusoe at four months old was too adorable to leave behind. Best spur of the moment decision we ever made.
    XX

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  17. I'm so excited about this countdown until you introduce Teddy to us :D
    Have a beautiful and blessed week, dear Kary and we're counting the days here, too !! :)

    xoxoxo

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  18. My computer is back up -- sort of. I did a huge ham, too. We love ham and we had 20 people, but still there is a lot left. I love bean soup with lots of ham and I have good luck with scalloped potatoes and ham. I have frozen a ham bone, but never the ham itself. My Aunt used to grind up ham for ham salad, but I never did like it. I think I might get the choice slices and package them up to give to a friend who will enjoy it.

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  19. The croquettes look wonderful! It was roast leg of lamb at the manor this year. Mmm.

    The countdown to Teddy is making me excited!

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  20. Can you send me some? I love ham...it is very nice with some fruit or chutney or some cheese... these croquettes also sound good...maybe pop some of those in the post too...if only it were possible! Good luck with picking up Teddy! How exciting! xxx

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  21. You can send me some ham too! Split pea soup with ham..bean soup with ham..scalloped potatoes and ham..ham and eggs...ham and cheese sandwiches. I would have one happy husband. He love,love,LOVES ham!!

    Excited for you to pick up Teddy! Can hardly wait to see photos. xx

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  22. Ham croquettes and a spring salad, what could be better? I cut up my leftovers and freeze them in small batches. A couple of weeks from now, you'll want to make that split-pea soup, that ham and cheese souffle.

    I know the feeling, though! Too much of a good thing!

    Happy trails to you on your Anza's pick up trip.

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  23. Hi Kary, I just read your comment over at mine. To answer your question I am English, living in France. Teddy will be with you before you know it. Guess what I am doing at the moment apart from blogging, cleaning all the floors downstairs, as Crusoe cut one of his pads earlier and now there are bloody paw prints EVERYWHERE.
    XX

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  24. Ham heaven ! But I agree , you can have too much of a good thing .
    Red lentil soup with ham would be my choice . Or a Spanish soup .... stock from the bones mixed 50/50 with chicken stock , served with a bit of chopped ham , a bit of chopped hardboiled egg , mint and some croutons . (Sounds odd but is delicious . Just don't make it too thick .).
    However you eat it , you'll enjoy it , now you've got a date . Exciting !

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  25. Kary, Crusoe is fine, It was only a small cut, but one of those that bleeds a lot, a bit like a paper cut, I have administered dog antiseptic on his paw.

    I have been to the States, my Stepmother is American and lives in North Carolina and my Father and Stepmother divide their time between NC, England and France, now lets see, where have I been, obviously NC, Florida, New York, Long Island and when I was younger my Brother and I flew to San Francisco and drove down Highway One, stopping off at Carmel, LA and finishing in San Diego, it was great I loved San Francisco and The Big Sur.

    I am dying to visit The States again, maybe I will pop over to see my Stepmother later in the year and do some travelling with her.
    XX

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  26. Kary, that would be lovely, I will keep you posted. and you should think about coming to Europe.... you would love it.
    XX

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  27. so how were the coquettes? i've never had them. leftover ham is wonderful in wild rice soup. i freeze very little but had a bunch of leftover ham from the last time i made it and just recently defrosted it and made everyone sandwiches on homemade rolls with my homemade mustard and everyone was asking....you made a ham? they couldn't figure out how i made one without them smelling it. ha!!! i like to fool the people in this family! (i got it from the 'freezes beautifully section in my cookbook') there i go again...another steel magnolia's quote.

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  28. Cold, thinly sliced ham eaten with Cumberland Sauce is delicious. I use Delia Smith's recipe - red currant jelly, port, ginger, mustard and the juice of an orange and lemon. Mmmm yummy!

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  29. I always made a big pot of pea soup! And then froze it in double serving containers.
    Or a ham quiche??
    I bet the croquettes will be good too.

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  30. Why don't you be wild and crazy and throw the rest of the ham away?

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  31. Hello dearie,

    You are in my thoughts as the excitement grows for Teddy's arrival.

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  32. I've cut up and froze leftover ham. It was good to use for pea soup, brown beans, brunch stratas, etc. Sadly I ahve to vbe careful not to eat so much ham these days because of the high salt content as I have high BP.

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Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by. I appreciate all your kind comments more than you can know.