Scalloped Potatoes & Ham: A Betty Crocker Classic



Scalloped Potatoes and Ham

A few weeks back, Rachel & I had some friends coming over for a dinner party.  From 8 O'Clock Ranch, our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) in upstate New York, we had a beautiful fresh ham in the freezer.  Fresh ham might seem a little odd at first because the vast majority of ham sold in the grocery store has been cured, smoked, or both.  Fresh ham, if cooked without curing or smoking, is not too different from a roast pork loin (except it's from the leg rather than the back of the pig).  If you decide to cook the scalloped potatoes and ham recipe, you can buy a Smithfield or similar pre-cooked country ham.

With a 4-pound ham and seven people, I thought it would be fun to do a ham themed meal.  Rachel & I would serve three courses, each using the cooked ham (I cooked it ahead of time).  The first course was slices of multi-grain bread, topped with a sweet Bourbon mustard, thinly cut ham, a thick slice of Swiss cheese, and a mayo-based red cabbage & apple slaw.  Yum!

The second course was a yellow split pea soup, which of course depends heavily on the rich ham flavor.  It's difficult to make a good split pea soup without pork. 

I found this particular recipe on Food Network's website.  Here's the recipe link: Ham & Split Pea Soup.  While searching for green split peas at my local Whole Foods, I came across yellow split peas.  In fact, Whole Foods didn't even carry green split peas for some strange reason.  Anyway, the yellow split peas are supposed to be more delicate and not quite as hearty as green split peas.  Plus, as one of our friends said, it looks a lot more appetizing than the famous off-putting green color of classic split pea soup. 

Patience is key with this recipe, so make sure you have plenty of time to cook the soup.  It took about three hours of cooking the soup on medium and several additional cups of water added to the pot as it reduced, before the split peas softened and broke down.  So plan ahead!

The third and main course was the scalloped potatoes and ham.  This is a recipe I have grown up with all my life.  It's perfect for reusing cooked ham from a big holiday or family gathering, which is how I often ate it as a child.  The salty ham, creamy white sauce, and thinly sliced potatoes deliver a wonderfully balanced flavor.  I cut the ham into thickly sliced, bite-sized pieces, but you could dice it if you prefer. 

To make the recipe, which is a Betty Crocker classic, you only need a handful of ingredients: onion, celery, milk, butter, flour, and of course, ham and potatoes. 

If you decide to use a fresh ham, I recommend  brining it for 10-12 hours before cooking.  Also, you should cook it the day before you plan on using it in the scalloped potatoes & ham recipe.  After all, it's meant for using leftover ham. 

So I hope you enjoy this childhood recipe.  While I almost always recommend a particular wine with a recipe, this one is best served with a tall glass of cold milk.  Yum!

Scalloped Potatoes Recipe (straight from the Betty Crocker cookbook):

The only change, as you might have noticed from scanning the recipe, is adding the ham.  Add about a 12 to 16 ounces of ham to the recipe, layering the ham in between the layers of potatoes and white sauce.  I also added a 1/2 tsp. of nutmeg to white sauce recipe.