One Style Of Ham Is Perfect For A Smaller Gathering

Got a small crew for the holidays? If you take Ina Garten's advice for throwing the best dinner parties to heart, this will mean you now need to adjust meal sizes to better suit a smaller gathering. Switching from a large buffet to a targeted menu may feel like downgrading, but smaller portions certainly do not mean less flavor. This is especially true for hams. While a huge country or smoked ham is certainly a mouthwatering sight, let's be honest: it is not the most practical choice for a smaller gathering.

Tim Ziga, Culinary Expert for The Honey Baked Ham Company, shared his insights into what attributes make a ham better suited for an intimate meal. According to Ziga, the style of ham best for a smaller gathering is a boneless ham from the Honey Baked Ham Company. "It's great for smaller gatherings and a little less intimidating if you don't want to deal with the bone. It has a slightly sweeter, lighter smoked taste since it's only smoked 12 hours, rather than the deep, rich smoky taste our bone-in hams have from their 24-hr smoke," Ziga explains.

Needless to say, your boneless ham does not necessarily have to be a product of The Honey Baked Ham Company (though Ziga recommends it). Regardless of the source, the light sweetness of a boneless ham is sure to pair well with a variety of side dishes to help make the dinner party of your dreams.

While homemade macaroni and cheese is a perfectly creamy, rich counterpart to ham, boxed mac and cheese reinvigorated with soup is sure to please as well. For greener side dishes, roasted Brussels sprouts sprinkled with parmesan cheese or lightly seasoned roasted green beans will readily bring the entire meal together. 

Setting the menu for a gathering is a balancing act in and of itself. It is important that the main dish, the sides, and the beverages work together to balance each other out. Knowledge of which wines pair best with different types of ham is important for that reason. Regardless of the sides or choices of wine, a boneless ham is the perfect way to bring people together, whether to celebrate or simply catch up over a delicious meal.