Ham with baked pineapple and mustard au jus

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350F (180C). Place ham in a wide roasting pan with shallow sides. Using a knife with a sharp tip, score top and sides of ham in a diamond pattern, about 1/4 inch (0.5 cm) deep. Pour beer and water over ham. Tent with heavy-duty foil, sealing to pan on 2 sides only. Bake in centre of 350F (180C) oven 1 hour, basting with beer halfway through.

• Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir sugar with mustard and honey. After 1 hour, remove ham from oven and discard foil. Spoon one-quarter of mustard mixture over entire surface of ham. Return ham to oven and continue baking, uncovered. Coat with more mustard mixture every 15 minutes until all is used and a light glaze has formed on ham, about 1 more hour. Make sure enough liquid remains in pan to keep it from burning; add more water, if needed. Meanwhile, cut top off pineapple, then slice peel from fruit. Cut away brown eyes. Slice pineapple into rings, about 1 inch (1 cm) thick. Using a paring knife, remove core from each slice. Spread slices out in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet.

• When ham is baked and glazed, after a total of about 2 hours, remove from oven and transfer to a cutting board. Increase oven temperature to 450F (230C). Loosely tent ham with foil and let stand. Generously brush surface of each pineapple slice with ham pan juices. Bake pineapple in centre of 450F (230C) oven, uncovered, until dark golden and juices from pineapple are bubbly, from 12 to 15 minutes. Meanwhile, pour remaining pan juices into a small saucepan set over low heat. Simmer, stirring often, until slightly thickened. Then slice ham. Serve with pineapple rings and warm pan juices. Ham will keep well, covered, in the refrigerator up to 4 days. Leftover ham is great in our Easter egg strata (also in the Recipe File). Store sauce in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator up to 4 days.