Cherry Mustard Glaze

Cherry Mustard Glaze on Ham

I am always looking for new sauces and glazes for food. We were having a ham dinner and I wanted to dress it up. I had some wonderful frozen cherries and thought they would be a nice place to start. I had cooked them down for a bit and had added some cider vinegar and some honey but it needed something more. Inspired by a friend’s comment about a mustard sauce her mother makes I ended up adding a grainy mustard to the sauce in progress. That was it!! The ingredient I was looking for. We had it on the ham and it was a huge hit, Simple, with only a few ingredients, it is a glaze I will be making again. I am sure it would be good on poultry and I would love to try it on a fresh pork roast or on duck.

Cherry Mustard Glaze

3-4 cups pitted sour cherries- I used a variety called Balaton- darker and not as sour as other sour cherries

1/2 c. cider vinegar

1/4 cup honey, or to taste

1/2 c. grainy mustard

salt and pepper to taste

Place the cherries in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until much of the liquid has cooked off. Stir occasionally. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook until mixture has thickened. Stir more often as mixture gets thicker to prevent scorching. Adjust seasonings. I was using this on a ham so I didn’t add much salt, but would add more if I were using it on fresh pork or poultry. Makes about 2 cups.

To use: Spoon mixture over the meat at least 30 minutes before food will be done so sauce can caramelize a bit. Could also be warmed and served on the side as a dipping sauce. I left the cherries whole, but you could puree the mixture for a smoother sauce.