Country Ham Quiche!

Since I grew up in Kentucky and have lived here all of my life, at one time I never really realized that not everyone had access to or was familiar with country ham.   Country ham is Kentucky, maybe more than bourbon, horses and tobacco.  

 I have since learned that country ham is fairly regional.  When you go past the Mason Dixon line north or to the west, it sort of starts to fade away.  Really surprising is that it's also not very available in Mississippi, Louisiana and much of Alabama.  

 I am not completely sure why this is, but I have  a theory that it has to do with the saying ...."It's cold enough to kill hogs in here".   Have you ever heard someone say that about a cold room?  Well, it had to be really cold before you could kill hogs because the process of dressing the meat and such took some time and if it was too warm, the meat would ruin.  Maybe it wasn't cold enough in those coastal states to cure the meat?  I am not really sure. 

I am told that my grandfather was well known for wonderful country hams and smoked shoulders.  He killed five to six hogs each winter.  That might seem like a lot, but he had 11 kids to feed. 

 According to my aunts, his secret was using both hickory and sassafras woods and he used the roots of the sassafras tree not just the limbs.  It gave the meat a very unique flavor.   Everybody around wanted the secret to his smoking technique.   

You may have heard the saying, 'they used every part of the hog, but the squeal",   according to my mother...they did. Which probably explains my excessive use of  bacon and ham in my cooking...it's genetic! 

Of course, now days you can order country ham online, but I am not sure a lot of people would know what to do with it.  Somebody asked me today, what makes Kentucky cuisine so different from other areas, and I have decided that a big part of it is the country ham (and so much more).  We fry it, bake it, and use it to season everything from dried beans to green beans and just any kind of fresh greens like collards, mustard or turnip greens.   That's why any discussion of foods for a Kentucky Derby celebration, party or tea must include country ham!   You will find the usual country ham and biscuits and there is nothing wrong with that at all, but this is the use of country ham in a quiche and it really makes this quiche extra good. 

Here is what you will need:

Country ham (just the biscuit slices is enough), eggs, half and half, butter, sour cream, pie crust, cheddar cheese, Swiss cheese, salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, Tabasco sauce.

Ingredients:

1 deep dish pie crust
2 Tbs. butter
1 1/2 cups chopped country ham

4 eggs

1 cup half and half

1/2 cup sour cream

1 cup cheddar cheese

1 cup Swiss cheese

1/2 tsp. seasoned salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

dash of cayenne pepper

dash of Tabasco sauce



Melt 2 Tbs. butter in a skillet.  Wash the ham slices off.  Country ham tends to be very salty and can be a little gritty out of the package so it needs to be rinsed off.  Chop it up and saute it in the butter.  Country ham is a cured meat, but it is not fully cooked. 

Beat the eggs with a whisk, add half and half, sour cream, seasoned salt, pepper cayenne and Tabasco sauce and whisk until well blended.   Place the pie crust in a deep pie plate or you can use a frozen deep dish pie crust. 

Place the pie plate on a cookie sheet or pizza pan.  The quiche cooks more evenly like this and it's easier to move in and out of the oven.

Place the ham with the butter in the bottom of the crust.  Sprinkle both cheeses over the ham.  Pour the egg mixture over all. 

Place in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 50-55 minutes.  If it starts to brown on top too much and is not done in the center, place a piece of foil lightly over the top.  Usually this doesn't happen, but all ovens vary.

Let the quiche sit for 5 to 10 minutes before slicing and it will come out much easier.   For a Derby Tea these could be made in a mini muffin pan for mini quiches, just chop the ham a little finer.

Slice and serve!  I served it with fried potatoes!