For me, holidays usually revolve around friends, family, food and wine.  There’s nothing better than getting together, telling stories and playing games while enjoying great food and wine.  This year most of our time was spent watching my daughter search for Easter eggs.  This was her first time hunting Easter eggs and she had a wonderful time.

This Easter was bittersweet, though. I enjoyed spending time with my family, but I was also saddened by the recent passing of Jess Jackson.  He had always made me feel like a part of his extended “K-J family,” so this year we raised our glasses (filled with Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay) in honor of Jess who always appreciated friends, family, food and wine.

As long as I can remember, my family has always enjoyed roasting a nice ham for Easter.  There are usually lots of leftovers, so I like to make buttermilk biscuits so we can have little ham sandwiches.  Fresh baked buttermilk biscuits served warm right out of the oven are so simple and delicious – they are a buttery comfort food that most folks can’t resist.  I recently found a source here in northern California that sells White Lily flour, a Southern staple since 1883.  White Lily flours are milled from 100% soft red winter wheat and they make the most light & fluffy biscuits.

I like to pair ham with Chardonnay, but if you served a sweeter ham, such as honey-glazed, Riesling makes an extraordinary pairing.  Below are my recipes for Honey Riesling Glazed Ham (just in case you don’t have any leftovers!) and Buttermilk Biscuits.

Honey Riesling Glazed Ham
This glazed ham is a perfect pairing to our Riesling.  The flavors of honey and orange blossom in the wine are complimented by the glaze.

Serves 15

Ingredients

• 1 (5 pound) ready to eat bone-in ham, scored ¼ -inch deep in crisscross pattern
• 1 cup honey
• ½ cup Riesling
• ½ cinnamon stick
• 1 Tbsp. orange zest, finely grated

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 325˚F.
2. Combine honey, Riesling, cinnamon stick and orange zest in a sauce pot and place over medium-low heat.  Bring to a simmer and reduce until slightly thickened, approximately 10 minutes, stirring often.
3. Place the ham in a roasting pan and brush with the glaze.  Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Baste every 15 minutes.  Uncover for the last 20 minutes to allow glaze to caramelize. Remove from oven and let rest for 15 minutes before slicing.

Buttermilk Biscuits
Makes 11 biscuits

Ingredients

• 8 ounces White Lily self-rising flour, plus more as needed
• 2½ ounces cold butter, diced
• 6 ounces buttermilk
• 2 Tbsp. butter, melted
• Preheat the oven to 400ºF.

Method

1. Sift flour into a bowl. Cut in the chilled butter with a fork or pastry cutter until the butter is the size of peas.
2. Stir in the buttermilk to form dough, but don’t overwork.
3. Place dough on a well-floured board and knead 3 times. Using a floured rolling pin, roll out dough to ½-inch thick.
4. Cut out the biscuits with a 1½-inch floured circle cutter, being careful not to twist as you cut.
5. Place the biscuits on a sheet tray lined with parchment paper. Brush the tops with melted butter and bake for 12 to 16 minutes or until golden brown on top. Rotate pan halfway through.

After the biscuits are finished, slice them in half and use your leftover ham to make delicious sandwiches.