I also like bone in....and have cooked my share of butt end hams as well as whole hams....when you get a hog and have it butchered and the hams smoked, you have to do SOMETHING with the butt. Yes, the shank is easier to carve. I prefer uncooked ham....and you sure don't have to cook it all day....a big one will be done in 3 hours or so at 325....depending how big is BIG! LOL! And I think they taste better by far! I also have placed the ham, cut side up in a dish in the refrigerator and poured honey over it....let it sink in and added more, repeat... It's sweet but delicious! So.....the consenus...bone in is tastier, shank end easier to carve, I like ready to cook rather than pre cooked....but some don't care, and honey baked are delicious, but expensive. That said, I think cure 81 is not worth the price and more like lunch meat than =real ham and I say stay away from those ham loaf things! Linda C

ABSOLUTELY! ITS AN ENZYME IN FRESH PINEAPPLE! COMBINED WITH BROWN SUGAR AND REAL BUTTER ITS THE PERFECT STORM TO DIGEST A HAM.we thought someone put cheese in the meat or it was bad..but it was just digesting in enzymes God it was awful.thank goodness I had more in the fridge.I. put pineapple and brown sugar no butter and took it with us we ate it within the hour so no problems.I should have known better because I use pineapple and strawberries for digestion and pineapple is an awesome anti inflammatory.

A fresh "ham" is not what I consider ham. It is very good and it is the same cut of pork, but it is uncured. Ham is cured with spices and smoked. It is considered fully cooked, but it tasted better if you cook it some more. It is sold as a whole ham, a shank ham, or a butt ham. Shank and butt are just describing the pieces after a whole ham is cut in half. Sometimes they cut slices out of the center and sell them as ham steak. The glaze I like is 3/4 cup unsweetened pineapple juice, 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger. Combine all ingredients and use to baste ham. I like to arrange the whole pineapple slices over the top and sides of the ham and then baste with the glaze.

This is my 3rd attempt at sauerkraut. First time was too scary, and I abandoned it. Second time around, I was more adventurous, and scraped the "spooge" off the edges and then tasted the 'kraut. It was SOUR, since I'd let it ferment for a long time (6 weeks or so), but good. Other people's sauerkraut tasted bland in comparison. I'm going to check this new batch at 5 days, and keep checking it every little bit after that til I find "just right". I know it takes me a while to get used to new favors, so hopefully the more you drink your lemonade, sample the cheese, etc., the more you'll like it. Have you tried store bought Kombucha? I'd love to get that kind of flavor and fizziness in our home brew. That's great you have space for a back pantry kitchen, Building for the CATS. I think this is an ideal setup, really. AK Tillery's kitchen comes to mind. Our pantry is only about 4x4ish, and has no room for a back counter. I'm thankful for what it holds, but its use is somewhat limited. The Amish around here often have a second kitchen in the basement. This is their canning area, and is nice for when they host large groups for church and fellowship. One friend used her second kitchen for juicing as part of Gerson therapy for her husband's Lyme disease (He's doing GREAT!) She was really thankful that all that prep and cleanup could happen separate from her everyday kitchen. Your rolling carts and extended counter sound super helpful, loonlakelaborcamp. I hear you on nowhere to clamp things down, we had issues with that in our old house when we'd go to use the squeezo or the apple peeler. I love the idea of the canning jars at the backsplash. I think Mamagoose has this too, right? I have my spices under my cooktop, which is pretty handy too. I just need to break down and order storage tins to contain them more neatly. It's a mess under there right now. I don't think I mind the "working kitchen look" so much as I mind A.The lack of counter space. B.When there is clutter on the counters, the kids don't clean up as well (and neither does mom, frankly ; )) It's like the stuff all blends together, and it gets more full and disorganized by the minute, like Scoby's left too long in their dark swampy tea. : )