But I don't know how to do Christmas dinner. For me, it's always been Chinese takeout, and my wife doesn't seem to have any particular traditions. Should it be a goose? Duck? Ham? Pot roast? Since the Christmas celebrating part of our family is all German, I wanted to go no holds barred German feast - a ham with cabbage, potatoes, and all the fixings.
Baking a ham for two seemed silly. Honestly, making any traditional Christmas dish for two is pretty difficult. These feasts were designed to be just that - feasts, shared with every member of your family. But that was simply not to be this year, and so splitting a ham steak seemed to make the most sense. And thankfully that is the way we went, because this is one of the more delicious things I have ever made. It's probably our last Christmas for two ever, and even if half of the pair is actually Jewish, it was quite the enjoyable day.
Ham Steak with Hazelnut Sauce
Serves 2
2 T butter
1 onion, thinly sliced
2 t canola oil
1 1/4-inch thick cooked ham steak
1/2 c heavy cream
2 T Dijon mustard
1/4 c hazelnuts, toasted and finely ground
salt and pepper
3 T bread crumbs
2 sprigs rosemary
1 T chives, finely chopped
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a baking dish with 1 tablespoon butter. Arrange onion slices on bottom. Bake until soft, about 15 minutes.
Heat oil in a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Sear ham steak, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate. Add cream and mustard to skillet, and cook for 2 minutes. Add hazelnuts, and season with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over onions in baking dish. Place steak on top of onions and sauce.
Melt remaining butter and combine with bread crumbs. Coat steak with bread crumb mixture, and place rosemary on top. Bake until hot, about 15 minutes. Garnish with chives.
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