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Orange and Brown Sugar Glazed Ham

March 31, 2021 by girlinspired Leave a Comment

Moist and caramelized Brown Sugar Glazed Ham is the perfect recipe for Easter, Thanksgiving or any other holiday and celebratory meal hosted with family and friends!

close up of sliced ham on blue platter with fork separating slices

There’s just something about a glazed ham that stirs excitement and a sense of expectancy for good quality time with loved ones around the table. That’s certainly my experience anyway, and using a pre-cooked spiral ham for this purpose helps to substantially reduce the overall cooking time so that I do actually get time to partake in the festivities!

sliced brown sugar glazed ham on blue platter

The basting sauce keeps this pre-cooked ham beautifully moist and tender, while also boosting the natural flavor of the meat and infusing it with spices and seasonings. Finish off your ham with a brown sugar glaze to get that inviting caramelization effect that no one will be able to resist!

close up of sliced ham on blue platter with fork separating slices

How Should I Store Brown Sugar Glazed Ham?

This cooked ham can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator once completely cool for up to 5 days. You can also wrap your ham in aluminium foil before storing in an airtight container to help prevent it from drying out.

When storing leftover ham, consider keeping any juices from the cooking process in a separate container in the refrigerator so that you can add it to a baking dish when the time comes to reheat the ham for serving. It’s a great way to prevent your ham from drying out when reheating. Cover your ham in a baking dish with aluminium foil with the juices when you reheat in the oven. 

slices of ham and green beans on blue and white plates

What Should I Serve With This Ham? 

While this Brown Sugar Glazed Ham is sure to be the highlight of any lunch or dinner, it’s just as important to pair it with some tasty side dishes, especially when feeding a hungry crowd!

Side dishes that will go well with this Brown Sugar Glazed Ham:

  • Perfectly Creamy Mashed Potatoes
  • Homemade Dinner Rolls
  • Cranberry Jello Salad
  • Artichoke Rice Salad
sliced brown sugar glazed ham on blue platter

How Can I Use Up Leftover Glazed Ham?

If you’ve got leftover ham sitting in the fridge then consider making additional meals out of it to feed the family or guests over the following days. Leftover ham can also be wrapped up tight and stashed in the freezer for a taste of the holidays down the road.

Here are some great meal ideas for leftover ham:

  • Swap ham for the sausage in this Cheesy Egg Bake
  • Ham and cheese muffin cups
  • Broccoli and Ham quiche
  • Ham sandwiches
  • Ham, cheese and hash brown frittata

Tips For Making the BEST Brown Sugar Glazed Ham

  1. I’ve used a pre-cooked ham for this recipe to cut down substantially on the overall cooking time. When preparing a pre-cooked ham, always follow the heating recommendations on the ham packaging and you can also go ahead and discard any glaze or rub that comes with the pre-cooked ham since you’ll be making your own with this recipe.
  2. You can cook a ham from scratch although it’s going to increase the cooking time by about 2-2.5 hours. Cooking time is usually 20 minutes per pound of ham when cooking it from scratch instead of using a pre-cooked ham. 
  3. You have the option of serving your ham warm or cold depending on whether you’re serving a cold lunch/dinner or want a warm meal. 
  4. You can cook the pre-cooked ham with the basting sauce for less time (or skip the basting sauce completely) and simply use the glaze recipe and instructions for a caramelized coating.
  5. The great thing about the basting sauce is that it’s easily varied to suit your taste so feel free to add in whatever spice combinations you like. Honey is great to use as a sweetener, warming spices also go very well with ham, and you could substitute orange marmalade or peach preserves for the apricot preserves.  
  6. While it’s completely optional, if you want to caramelize the glaze on your ham much faster, place the ham under the broiler for a couple of minutes after applying the glaze. If you do use the broiler, make sure to keep a watchful eye on your ham as it is more susceptible to burning or burning the top without caramelizing the sides. 
close up of sliced ham on blue platter with fork separating slices

Other Main Meal Ideas For Any Occasion

  • Classic Pot Roast
  • Herb Roasted Chicken Recipe
  • The Best Tri-tip
close up of sliced ham on blue platter with fork separating slices

Brown Sugar Glazed Ham

Moist and caramelized Brown Sugar Glazed Ham is infused with orange, apricot and warming spices and then glazed to perfection.
0 from 0 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 3 hours
Servings: 12
Calories: 589kcal
Author: girlinspired
Prevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

  • 10-15 pound spiral cut pre-cooked ham

Basting Sauce Ingredients

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon

    ground mustard 


  • 1/4 cup apricot jam or preserves
  • 8 oz. orange juice
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar

Glaze Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup salted butter

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 275°F.
  • In a small saucepan, combine basting sauce ingredients: cloves, nutmeg, ginger, ground mustard, jam, orange juice, and the sugar.
    jam, spices, brown sugar in a white saucepan with oranges, jam, and ham alongside pan
  • Heat over medium, stirring occasionally until the sugar and jam have dissolved into a liquid sauce. Simmer for 1-2 minutes.
    bubbly dark basting sauce in white saucepan with ham, jam, and oranges nearby
  • Remove the ham from its packaging. Place the ham, cut side down, on a rack in a large roasting pan.
  • Use a pastry brush to coat the ham with the basting sauce. The sauce will be runny, some will run down into the roasting pan and that is fine. Baste the sauce between the layers of ham as much as possible.
    basting brush applying basting sauce to ham in white roasting pan
  • Cover the ham and pan with aluminum foil and bake in the oven for about 2 ½ hours. (The ham is already cooked through, so you are heating it to serving temperature, typically 140°F.) Check the ham every 30 minutes or so and brush the juices up over the ham to baste it (optional).
  • When the ham is heated through, remove it from the oven and discard the aluminum foil. Increase the oven temperature to 425°F.
  • Combine the glaze ingredients (sugar, butter, and brown sugar) in a small saucepan.
    white saucepan with brown sugar, granulated sugar, and butter with ham covered in aluminum foil nearby
  • Heat over medium until the butter is melted and the mixture forms a paste.
    bubbly brown sugar glaze in white saucepan with ham nearby
  • Brush the glaze all over the outside of the ham.
    basting brush applying brown sugar paste onto ham in white roasting pan
  • Place the ham back into the oven (no cover) and cook for 10-20 minutes longer until the sugar glaze caramelizes. Be careful not to burn the glaze. Remove from the oven.
    brown sugar glazed ham on blue serving platter with plate of green beans and salt/pepper shakers nearby
  • Slice and serve after allowing the ham to sit for about 10 minutes.
Tried this recipe?Follow me on Pinterest @girlinspired!

Nutrition

Calories: 589kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 57g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 231mg | Sodium: 3532mg | Potassium: 907mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 166IU | Vitamin C: 80mg | Calcium: 31mg | Iron: 3mg

Filed Under: Easter, Food and Recipes, Holiday Inspiration, Main Course, Thanksgiving Tagged With: brown sugar, ham

Brandy Pecan Baked Brie

September 28, 2020 by girlinspired Leave a Comment

This Brandy Pecan Baked Brie is to die for – brandy and brown sugar soaked into pecans and toasted over this ooey gooey buttery brie. Served with apples or crackers, and just 5 minutes to prep, this dish is the best appetizer for any get together. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.browned pecans and brown sugar over brie in a baking dish on a wooden serving board

This baked brie can be served as a standalone appetizer, but it also makes a lovely accompaniment to a charcuterie board. It takes just 5 minutes to prep the day before and bakes up within just a few minutes when guests are arriving. I serve this several times throughout the year, but always always when my girlfriends come for my annual Halloween party and murder mystery night.close up of melted brie slice with brandy soaked pecans baked on top

Brandy Pecan Brie Ingredients:

  • Brandy – You can use your favorite brand of Brandy. The alcohol content will burn off during cooking, and the flavor is perfect with the brown sugar and the brie. I have tried the recipe with rum as well, but the flavor really is a bit too strong. Stick to the brandy.
  • Pecans – oh my, I feel like pecans and brown sugar were made for each other. They are just so good together – add in the punch from the brandy and the buttery balance of the cheese, and this is a combo not to be altered.
  • Brown Sugar – The light brown sugar is a must in this recipe – the sweetness makes the pecans delicious crunchy bits of candy to contrast with the cheese.
  • Brie – You can use a regular wedge of brie for this recipe, but I’ve adjusted the recipe I used to use so that I have enough pecans to cover a big ‘ol Costco size round of brie. It ALWAYS gets eaten. Choose a brie that is not coated with any other herbs, nuts, or spices. You also do not want a mold infused brie (one that is a hybrid of bleu cheese and brie). Use a plain brie or even a double cream brie. Yummmmm.

How to Make Brandy Pecan Baked Brie:

The key to making this a successful dish is allowing enough time for the pecans to soak up all the brandy and brown sugar flavor before baking. This really needs at the very least 4 hours, but if you can pop the mixture into the refrigerator the day before you intend to serve, it is best. There are just a few ingredients, making this a breeze to put together. I like to use a Tupperware container that has a lid to mix up the pecans, brandy, and brown sugar. Dump everything in together, put the lid back on, and stash in the refrigerator until it’s cooking time! I like to stir the mixture a couple times, but it’s probably not necessary, it’s just fun to smell the yumminess and know how delicious it’s going to be when it’s all baked up.

Okay, so after a good soak, the pecan mixture is ready to meet its buttery match – the brie. Place the brie in a smallish oven safe dish – a pie plate will work. Give the pecan mixture a final stir and dump it all over the top of the brie. Use a spatula to make sure you get all the sugary liquid out of the tupperware. 4 step photo collage showing ingredients being mixed into a bowl, pouring the pecan mixture over brie, and the brandy pecan baked brie ready to go in the oven

Bake at 500 degrees for just 5-6 minutes. Watch it very carefully so the pecans don’t burn. By the time the pecans and sugar are browned, the liquor will be burned off and the cheese will be melted and gooey!

What to Serve with this Baked Brie:

You will want to prep your accompaniments ahead of time since the brie takes just minutes to bake up. It’s delicious with any of your traditional cheese and cracker type crackers. Again, go for a plain variety so that you don’t have competing flavors. I’ve also found crackers with dried fruit and nuts/seeds sometimes work well with the brown sugar, brandy, and brie. Olives in your crackers are too strong and not a good combination. Apples, of course, are also AMAZING with this appetizer. Slice some french bread to go with the brie. It’s good whether the french bread is toasted or soft and fresh.browned pecans and brown sugar over brie in a baking dish on a wooden serving board

Oh so good!! I hope you love this recipe as much as we do. And if you’re looking for some other yummies to serve at your next dinner party (or distanced driveway meet up), you might like these:

Great Appetizers and Party Bites

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Two-Ingredient Pumpkin Donuts

Bruschetta

Skinny Deviled Eggs

browned pecans and brown sugar over brie in a baking dish on a wooden serving board

Brandy Pecan Baked Brie

This Brandy Pecan Baked Brie is to die for – brandy and brown sugar soaked into pecans and toasted over this ooey gooey buttery brie.
0 from 0 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes
Marinate Time: 12 hours
Servings: 12
Calories: 252kcal
Author: girlinspired
Prevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

  • 1 cup pecans whole
  • 1 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup brandy
  • 13 oz. French brie

Instructions

  • Combine brandy, brown sugar, and pecans in a bowl.
  • Cover and soak in refrigerator overnight (or a minimum of 4 hours).
  • Place brie in an oven safe container such as a small pie plate or baking dishing.
  • Preheat oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Pour pecan mixture over the brie and place in oven. Bake for 6-8 minutes or until pecans are toasted brown and brie is warm and soft in the center. (Cover the pecan top with aluminum foil to prevent the nuts from burning if you are using a larger piece of brie that needs longer to warm through.)
  • Remove from oven and serve immediately with crackers, apple slices, and/or bread.
Tried this recipe?Follow me on Pinterest @girlinspired!

Nutrition

Calories: 252kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 31mg | Sodium: 198mg | Potassium: 105mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 186IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 78mg | Iron: 1mg

Filed Under: Food and Recipes, Soups|Salads|Side Dishes Tagged With: brandy, brie, brown sugar, pecans

Brown Sugar Banana Bread

April 13, 2020 by girlinspired 3 Comments

Mmmm, mmm, mmm.  Do I have the most delicious banana nut bread recipe for you!!  I attribute the moist melt in your mouth texture in this baked loaf to the sour cream in the recipe. The other key to the deliciousness is the brown sugar – I’m sure of it.  Never have you tasted such a delicious, moist banana bread with a deep caramelized banana flavor.  So grab those over-ripe bananas and start mixin’!!

The Best Banana Bread

This banana nut bread recipe uses common kitchen staples, but you can easily substitute shortening for the butter and/or gluten-free flour for the all-purpose flour and you will get an equally delicious banana bread.  I love walnuts in my banana bread, but you could try pecans or even macadamia nuts! I had a delicious coconut macadamia nut banana bread in Maui on our last visit and it was so good, I can’t even imagine how good it would be with this recipe as its base.

banana nut bread loaves in pan on cooling rack, with banana peel and tea towel

Let’s talk about the bananas for a minute. The secret to a banana bread that has that deep banana flavor is that you have to use very ripe bananas.  When they start turning brown, and they’re not so good for snacking, it’s time to get baking instead.  If your bananas have turned brown and you’re not quite ready to bake your bread – or you don’t have enough for the recipe quite yet – toss them into the freezer until you’re ready to bake. 

sliced banana nut bread loaf next to cooling rack, with banana peel and tea towel

This recipe will make two loaves of banana bread. It also bakes up lovely as banana bread muffins.  To ensure that your banana bread or your muffins are ultra moist, do not overbake.  Gently touch the top of the loaf as it nears the 1 hour baking time mark.  If you feel any jiggle, allow the bread to bake a few minutes longer.  You can also put a toothpick into the center to see if it comes out clean.  Try to pull your goodies out of the oven just as soon as they’re no longer gooey, but before they start drying out.

sliced banana nut bread loaf next to cooling rack, with banana peel and tea towel

Banana Nut Bread

This banana nut bread is extra moist with the addition of sour cream while the brown sugar transforms this banana bread into a caramelized banana delicious dream loaf.
0 from 0 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Side Dish
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Servings: 16
Calories: 363kcal
Author: girlinspired
Prevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

  • 3/4 C. butter softened
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 2 Cup brown sugar
  • 3 eggs beaten
  • 1/3 Cup light sour cream
  • 3 Cup flour
  • pinch salt
  • 1.5 teaspoons baking soda
  • 4 bananas brown (very ripe) bananas, mashed
  • 1 Cup chopped walnuts or other nuts

Instructions

  • Cream the butter and sugar.
  • Add the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla.
  • Combine the dry ingredients and stir into the wet mixture.
  • Fold in mashed bananas and nuts.
  • Divide between two large loaf pans (or fill muffin cups).
  • Bake at 350 degrees for 40-60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when stuck in the center. (I pull my bread out early because I like it a little gooey in the very center.)
Tried this recipe?Follow me on Pinterest @girlinspired!

Notes

This recipe makes great muffins, too. I freeze the muffins, which are convenient to pull out and pop in the microwave for a few seconds for kids’ snacks or quick on-the-go food.

Nutrition

Calories: 363kcal | Carbohydrates: 53g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 56mg | Sodium: 206mg | Potassium: 224mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 31g | Vitamin A: 356IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 49mg | Iron: 2mg

banana nut bread loaves in pan on cooling rack, with banana peel and tea towel

sliced banana nut bread loaf next to cooling rack, with banana peel and tea towel

If you love baking (and eating!!) breads, read on…

Sweet Breads

If you like this recipe, you're going to love these other sweet bread recipes!

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Ultra moist, perfect chocolate chip banana bread.

Homemade Dinner Rolls Recipe

My Granny's recipe for the best sweet dinner rolls.

Hot Buttermilk Scones with Cinnamon-Sugar Crust

Moist and buttery delicious breakfast scones.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

Sweet breakfast rolls with the taste of pumpkin spice and slathered in cream cheese frosting.

Filed Under: Breads, Food and Recipes Tagged With: bananas, brown sugar, nuts

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