Cola Basted Ham

by Henry Sue
(Lubbock, Texas)

Ingredients:

1 seven to nine-pound Ham, rind removed
Whole cloves
1 pound dark-brown sugar
1 twelve-ounce can Coca-Cola
1 fourteen-ounce can pineapple rings, drained and juice reserved
1 cup sweet Malaga wine or Vino de Campo
10 to 12 maraschino cherries
Fresh bay leaves, for garnish

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Using a sharp knife, score surface of
ham crosswise and lengthwise, forming a crosshatch pattern about
1/4-inch deep and 1-inch apart. Place 1 clove in the center of each
square.

Place ham, fat side up, in a roasting pan. Pat the brown sugar onto the surface of the ham.
Expect some sugar to fall into the roasting pan.

Transfer to oven, and bake until brown sugar just begins to melt, about 30 minutes.

Pour Coca-Cola over ham, mixing with melted sugar in bottom of roasting pan. Baste ham with sugar mixture. Return to oven, and bake for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, combine 1 cup reserved pineapple juice and wine in a small bowl. Baste ham with pineapple mixture.

Bake ham for a total of 16 minutes per pound,
basting every 20 minutes. During the last 20 minutes of baking time, decorate ham with pineapple rings. Use 2 to 3 toothpicks to hold each ring in place. Center a cherry in the center of each ring,and adhere with a toothpick.

Transfer ham to a platter, removing all toothpicks. Garnish ham with fresh bay leaves.