So this is Christmas...

Just like that, Christmas is behind us and we are into the last days of 2012.

It felt a bit frenetic over the Eve of Christmas Eve, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day -- (That was a mouthful, wasn't it?) --  when we squeezed in meet-ups with friends and family alike. But in truth, I thrive on that kind of thing. Much to the husband's dismay, I should add. There's nothing I love more than a good party.

This year's Christmas was a teeny weeny bit anti-climatic for me because I didn't get to cook for Christmas Dinner. Being able to whip up my Beef Roast and sides is actually one of the highlights of Christmas for me. Those grandmothers who love to cook up a fill a whole table with food and exhort you to "Eat! Eat more!"? That's going to be me when it's my turn to be a Grandma! This year's annual family Christmas Dinner was scuppered by the fact that we didn't know till rather late in the day if my brother would be able to join us for Christmas Dinner. So when it turned out that he would be amiable on Christmas Eve after all, my Dad decided that we should all head out for dinner instead. 

But I did have the opportunity to try a new recipe for a ham this year though. Thanks to Jasmine's recommendation, I took the plunge and tried out Nigella Lawson's recipe for Ham in Coca Cola. Yes, you heard that right. I cooked a huge Gammon Ham in Coca Cola.

I was rather nervous the entire time it was stewing on the stove since there was no way I could rehearse this 3kg hunk of ham that I had committed to bring to a family party. But you know what? It turned out AMAZING. The ham had that sweetness from the coke, and the meat was tender and juicy.  I highly recommend this recipe! I was so happy with it, I repeated it for my family on Christmas Day. It really isn't too difficult, though you must get hold of an uncooked Gammon Ham. (I got mine from Swiss Butchery.)

If anyone is interested to try this out, I've reproduced Nigella's recipe below:

Ham in Coca Cola

Ingredients:

2 kg gammon ham (mild cure)
1 onion, peeled and cut in half
2 litres coca-cola
1 handful cloves
1 tablespoon black treacle
2 teaspoons english mustard powder
2 tablespoons demerara sugar

Method:

1. Mild-cure gammon doesn't need soaking, but if you know that you're dealing with a salty piece, then put it in a pan covered with cold water, bring to the boil, then tip into a colander in the sink and start from here; otherwise, put the gammon in a pan, skin-side down if it fits like that, add the onion, then pour over the Coke.

2. Bring to the boil, reduce to a good simmer, put the lid on, though not tightly, and cook for just under 2½ hours. If your joint is larger or smaller, work out timing by reckoning on an hour per kilo, remembering that it's going to get a quick blast in the oven later. But do take into account that if the gammon's been in the fridge right up to the moment you cook it, you will have to give it a good 15 minutes or so extra so that the interior is properly cooked.

3. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 240°C/gas mark 9.

4. When the ham's had its time (and ham it is, now it's cooked, though it's true Americans call it ham from its uncooked state) take it out of the pan and let cool a little for ease of handling. (Indeed, you can let it cool completely then finish off the cooking at some later stage if you want.) Then remove the skin, leaving a thin layer of fat. Score the fat with a sharp knife to make fairly large diamond shapes, and stud each diamond with a clove. Then carefully spread the treacle over the bark-budded skin, taking care not to dislodge the cloves. Gently pat the mustard and sugar onto the sticky fat.

5. Cook in a foil-lined roasting tin for approximately 10 minutes or until the glaze is burnished and bubbly.

6. Should you want to do the braising stage in advance and then let the ham cool, clove and glaze it and give it 30-40 minutes, from room temperature, at 180°C/gas mark 4, turning up the heat towards the end if you think it needs it.

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My other favourite part of Christmas is seeing my kids tear into all their presents. They are very blessed little kids and our trees was absolutely flooded with presents, waiting to be opened on Christmas Day. We carted most of the presents over to my sister's house for the annual gift-opening tradition, reserving just a few at home just so the kids could have some paper-ripping fun in the morning, and boy, did they enjoy it!

And when it came time to open all their presents proper, they were so completely distracted as they flitted from one item to another! It was just too much for their little minds to compute. Haha. We manage to prevent them from getting right into all the presents at once and plan to stash most of them away to dole out at the right moment throughout the year!

That was our Christmas. And now there's the New Year to look forward to!