Easter dinner

Spiral sliced ham

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Pineapple upside down cake with rum spiked whipped cream





Deviled eggs

Povitica bread

Navy beans

collard greens

Sweet potatoes

Not pictured: Cornbread muffins.

POT LIKKER-BRAISED FRESH HAM HOCKS WITH COLLARD GREENS AND POTATOES

FOR THE GREENS

2 lbs.. collard greens, stemmed and well washed

6 slices bacon

1 lar.. onion, peeled and diced large

1/2 C cider vinegar

2 Tbs. Kosher salt

2 Tbs. cracked black pepper

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

2 fresh ham hocks, about 1 lb each, trimmed of most external fat

2 tbs. veg.. oil

Kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste

2 lbs.. new potatoes, washed and halved

1. In a large stock pat, bring 1 gallon of water to a boil.  Add the collards, bacon and onion and stir several times, then reduce the heat to low and add the vinegar, salt, pepper and pepper flakes.  Cover and simmer for 2 hours.  Remove the greens with tongs, drain them and set them aside.  skim the fat from the liquid (the “pot Likker”) and leave it in the stockpot over very low heat.

2. preheat the oven to 500 degrees

3. In a deep roasting pan, toss the ham hocks with the oil, then sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.  roast for 20 minutes to brown, then reduce temperature to 300 degrees.  Remove the hocks from the pan and skim off the fat that has accumulated in them, leaving the meat juices behind.  Put the hocks back in the pan and add enough pot likker to cover them about halfway.  Cover the pan tightly with foil and braise in the oven for 1 /2 hours.

Maple Glazed Sweet Potatoes  Recipe by Wendy 

"Sweet potatoes made with brown sugar and maple syrup. A family favorite that everyone enjoys. If you're not cooking for a vegetarian crowd, you can top these with marshmallows as well."

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Ingredients

Original recipe makes 6 to 8 servings

Change Servings

2 1/2 sweet potatoes

3 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup maple syrup

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons flaked coconut(optional)

1/3 cup chopped pecans

Directions

1. Place sweet potatoes in a large saucepan with water to cover them. Bring the water to a boil, reduce heat, cover and let simmer 25 to 30 minutes until tender.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Use non-aerosol non stick spray to grease a 8x8 inch baking pan.
3. When the sweet potatoes are cool, peel and cut them into large chunks. Arrange them in the prepared dish.
4. In a small saucepan, melt butter, syrup, sugar and coconut together over a low heat. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Sprinkle mixture over sweet potatoes. Top mixture with pecans.
5. Bake 5 to 7 minutes, until top is lightly browned

Collard greens  Norm’s trial recipe April 2014. (Easter)

2 bundles collard greens

6 slices bacon

salted water to cover

cracked black pepper

pork or ham shanks with bone or meaty ham hocks if available

1 C. sugar

1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 C. cider vinegar

1 large onion, peeled cut in quarters

Optional: cook with 2 lbs. new potatoes, washed and halved if too big.

Roast hocks in roasting pan @ 500º for 20 minutes. Place in pot with pan juices and rest of ingredients and water to cover; simmer 2 hours. 

   PINEAPPLE UPSIDE DOWN CAKE 

    Makes one 10 1/2-inch cake 

I used Duncan Hines pineapple cake mix with fresh cut pineapple, maraschino cherries in 

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    1/2 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed.1/2 stick butter melted together and poured in bottom of pan, pineapple and cherries arranged over brown sugar, topped with cake mix and cooked until cake was done.  It took about twice as long as package directions.

     

    RUM-SPIKED WHIPPED CREAM 

    Makes 2 cups 

    1 cup heavy cream, well chilled 

    2 tablespoons rum, such as Mount Gay 

    Pour the cream into the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer. Add rum. Whip on high 

    speed until stiff peaks form, 45 to 60 seconds.

NAVY BEANS

1 bag small white beans

soak in water to cover overnight, Discard water replace with fresh water.

Roast ham shanks in over at 500º for 20 minutes, Add to bean pot with juices, Add

1/8tsp ginger

1/4 tsp. cloves

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1 can chicken broth

Few dashes sherry

Salt and Pepper to taste.

Cover with water, boil, skim, simmer 1 1/2 hours.  Remove ham bones, cook remove meat from bones, return ham, discard bones.

Ham was Carando brand spiral sliced, cooked according to package directions.

Povitica bread is store bought at Strawberry Hill Bakery. It is a tradition in the neighborhood where I grew up. It is of Croatian origin.

Here is a recipe

Povitica Bread

BREAD:

4 cakes yeast

2 Pints milk

16 Cups flour

2 teaspoons salt

2 Cups shortehing

2 Cups sugar

8 Eggs

Filling

 8 cups shelled walnuts pecans

2 1/2 C. milk

1 teaspoon butter

2 1/2 cups sugar

3 tablespoons honey

8 eggs

3 teaspoons vanilla

1 teaspoon salt

BREAD: Heat milk to lukewarm, add yeast and one cup of flour.  Set aside in a warm place for about 30 minutes to “test out”.

Beat eggs well. add sugar, beat to combine. Melt shortening.  To the yeast sponge add the remaining flour and salt a cup at a time alternating the liquids, the melted shortening, beaten eggs and milk.  Mix well, adding more flour only if needed for kneading.  Knead until smoothe and elastic, then put in a gresased bowl, turning so that the top of the dough is greased.  Cover with plastic wrap (original recipe said to cover with waxed paper and a damp cloth); set aside in a warm, draft free place.  

FILLING:  Grind nut meats and add 1 tsp salat.  Scald milk and add 1 tsp. butter, the sugar and honey.  Pour hot over nutmeats and mix well.  Geat eggs thoroughly, beat in vanila and add to nut mixture. Mix well. \

ASSEMBLY: After dough has risen to twice its original sizee, punch down and divide into to.  roll out on a large clean dish cloth of sheet until the dough is paper thin.  If the dough resists rolling, cover and let it rest a few minutes.  By tablespoons, dot the filling around the dough halves.  Spread with a rubber spatula. Take the ends of the cloth and start rolling up like a jelly roll.  Seala the edges and ends.  Roll enf over end and place in a greased bread pan.  Bake 350 degrees 1 hour and 20 minutes or until a tootpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.