Another Beautiful Cake ... and Ham Salad!

I'm going to a party this weekend and I'm taking a big bowl of this ham salad and a beautiful little cake!

Well, it IS a cake ... but probably not the type of cake you expected when you clicked the link. It's a diaper cake that will be sitting on the table at a baby shower. SB's nephew and his love are waiting on their first baby and boy, everyone is excited! I was asked to make ham salad, and cream of chicken soup for the luncheon. No worries there! I am still so high on the scent of baby powder and fresh cotton that I could be ordered to do just about anything and I'd blissfully obey!

Shopping for baby things was an otherworldly experience. I fell into a trance looking at all the cuteness in the infant department at the local big box store. I don't know what came over me, but I just kept putting sweet smelling things and soft things and really cute things into the shopping cart! It was bizarre! Then, of course, I had to stop at the craft store for just the right ribbons and cellophane, basket and card! SB shook his head and chuckled when I came home with the haul ... he just doesn't get it.

Now, about that ham salad ... the recipe I used is a Paula Deen recipe. I'm feeling kind of bad about poor Paula. She's been peddling real fast with the press, trying to explain why she basically hid her diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes from her public for three years while continuing to hype her recipes that are notoriously high in sugars, fats, and calories. I'm not sure how bad this recipe is ... there's a bit of fat,  a bit of salt, a bit  of sugar and ... um, never mind! Let's just say it's party food that you get a little of before it's knoshed up by a bunch of other folks. We'll leave it at that.

I had a serving for lunch because I just had to try it and boy, it's good! It has a big crunch factor in that it's loaded with minced onion, celery, and sweet gherkins. Mayonaisse holds it together and the ham is a lower sodium fully cooked ham. The prep time on the salad is a bit lengthy because you really do have to make sure the mince is uniform and there are no big chunks of veg or meat. I bought little finger rolls and the lettuce to have with the salad. I'm betting folks are going to really like it ... try it and see what you think.

Ham Salad

Serves 4 - 5

2 c. lower sodium ham cut into chunks and whizzed to a uniform mash in the food processor

1 c. minced celery stalk

¼ c. minced sweet onion

1 tsp Dijon mustard

2 hard-boiled eggs, finely chopped

¼ c. sweet gherkins, minced or sweet hotdog relish, drained

½ c. mayonaisse

Combine all the ingredients in a deep bowl and toss until everything is uniformly distributed and the salad is evenly moist.

Cover tightly and chill. Serve with crackers as a snack or with rolls and fresh lettuce as a lunch sandwich. This salad would also do well in thinly sliced bread square as tea snadwiches.

Note: Be careful not to overprocess the ham in the food processor. It should be in small pieces the size of the veg and not turned into a paste.