Sharing this Ham Loaf recipe with you is like sharing an old fashioned, comfort food
dinner with you. This is the first one that I have made myself from scratch.
I know that many people have never eaten Ham Loaf and are not quite sure what to expect. This was a dish that my mother served frequently when I was growing up. My local grocery store always had this available to buy, so I served it often also when I was first married.
They eventually quit selling it, so we didn’t have it for several years. Ham Loaf is served at Amish restaurants in our area.
I decided last week, to try making one myself. My
husband loved it, and I was pleased with it also. It’s a keeper.
A Ham Loaf is basically like a meat loaf but is made with ground pork and cooked ham. My mother liked to make it when we had leftover ham from holidays.
Begin by placing cooked ham cubes in a food processor, and pulse to obtain a finely ground texture.
Place the ground ham and ground pork in a large mixing bowl.
Add the eggs, red and green bell peppers, seasonings, and
stone ground mustard.
Pulse bread in food processor to make fine crumbs.
Add them to meat mixture.
Combine mixture with hands, and form into a loaf.
Place in parchment lined baking pan.
In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, vinegar,
and dry mustard. Place on top of ham loaf.
Top with pineapple slices and cherries.
Bake @ 350 degrees for 1 hr 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow to set 5-10 minutes.
Beautiful, crunchy brown crust on top. Moist on the
inside.
Transfer to a serving platter and cut into slices.
This is delicious served with HOMEMADE SCALLOPED POTATOES, green beans, and SAM’S HOMEMADE HOT ROLLS. Also perfect with sweet potatoes or mashed potatoes.
This recipe was shared on Weekend Potluck@ Sweet Little Bluebird.
Ingredients
- Ham Loaf:
- 1 lb cooked ham, cut in cubes
- 1 lb ground pork
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon onion, chopped
- 1 Tablespoon green bell pepper, diced
- 1 Tablespoon red bell pepper, diced
- 1 teaspoon stone ground mustard
- 1/2 cup finely crumbled bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup milk
- Glaze:
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 3 Tablespoons vinegar (may use apple cider or white)
- 3-4 slices pineapple
- 3-4 Marciano cherries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 11 x 7 or 13 x 9 inch baking pan with parchment paper.
- Place ham cubes in food processor and pulse until meat is crumbly texture.
- Place ham, ground pork, eggs, salt, pepper, onions, green and red bell peppers, and mustard in a large mixing bowl.
- Pulse 1-2 slices of bread in a food processor to make fine crumbles. Place bread crumbs in a small bowl, and stir in the milk. Add mixture to meat. Combine ingredients well, using your hands, like making a meat loaf. Form into a loaf and place in baking pan.
- In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, dry mustard, and vinegar. Press mixture onto top of ham loaf. Arrange pineapple slices and cherries over the brown sugar.
- Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, allow to set 5-10 minutes.
- Transfer to a serving platter and cut into desired size slices. Serves 4
I used to live in Ohio, just outside of Amish Country and would love to go to the Old Dutch Valley Restaurant and Inn in Sugarcreek specifically for their Ham Loaf and Peanut Butter Pie. Since moving to New Brunswick, Canada, I have not had any Ham Loaf or Peanut Butter. When I talk about those two dishes, everyone asks me what ham loaf is and, “who would make a pie out of Peanut butter??” Well, these people obviously know NOTHING about down home country cookin’ the Amish way. So, to Google I went….. ^_^ I found your recipe…. if I could, I would come right over and give you a big Mama Bear hug!! Not only is this an awesome recipe, the taste is Authenticly Amish!! My husband is Canadian and of course never had Ham Loaf. He thought it sounded like a strange dish until he had a piece from this recipe. Now he can’t get enough of it!!
Bless you for posting this recipe, you brought me some happy memories and gave me back a taste of home.
Oh my gosh!! Thank you. You made my day by your kind compliments. I am so glad the recipe tasted good for you and your husband. I love old recipes and miss so many things my mother made. It is true how recipes can bring us such happy memories. Everyone in my area loves to visit Sugarcreek! Talk about delicious food and ingredients. It was so nice to chat with you.