Last Call for Easter Ham + Free Shipping on $75 and Over!

Easter Ham

Deadline for ordering Easter Ham in time for Easter: Monday, March 21 at NOON CST.

At The Savory Pantry, we value supporting businesses that are kept in the family, where knowledge develops and dedication to quality builds across generations.

In the 1920s, the producers of our float-away delicious Arkansas hams (Petit Jean Meats of Morrilton, Arkansas) got their start when Felix Schlosser, a butcher and German immigrant, relocated to Arkansas in search of a better life. His nephews, Ed and Lonnie, were brought into the business at the ages of 12 and 10, respectively, and first delivered meat to Morrilton homes by bicycle. "They would deliver meat to people in the area twice daily," says David Ruff, current CEO and President of Petit Jean Meats (and Ed's son). "They didn't have refrigeration back then, so my dad and Uncle Lonnie would often deliver sausage in the morning for breakfast and beef or pork in the afternoon for dinner."

We won’t be delivering your Easter Ham by bicycle because chances are it would be a really long ride, but we have been lovingly packing these little corners of heaven for delivery straight to your door.

Make Eas-ter Eas-y with our help! Order your half or whole, peppered or smoked ham now along with all you'll need to make the simple, delicious, and healthful asparagus recipe below. 

HALF OR WHOLE HAM?

• Our whole hams weigh 14-17 lbs. and provide dinner-sized portions to 24-28. 
• Our half hams provide dinner-sized portions to 8-12. 

Order a whole ham and see our upcoming post about how to use any leftovers! 

UPON THE ARRIVAL OF YOUR HAM

Do a little dance to welcome your ham! It will have shipped frozen and some thawing is likely during transit (but it won't be as thawed as it would be if delivered by bike!). If you are serving your ham for Easter or within a few days, we suggest you defrost under refrigeration (24-48 hours). Your ham will keep indefinitely in the freezer; however, it is our recommendation to enjoy it within 6 months to guarantee its superb flavor.

SUGGESTION FOR WARMING YOUR HAM

Your ham is fully cured and slowly smoked over hickory coals. It will arrive ready to eat, but warming enhances the flavor. Allow your ham to sit at room temperature for 1-2 hours before heating. Remove it from its outer covering and place in a roasting pan with 1/4" water to the bottom of the pan. Bake uncovered in oven preheated to 300-325 degrees for 10-12 minutes per pound. If you like, loosely cover the pan with foil for the last half hour of heating. Let ham rest uncovered for 20 minutes before serving. 

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Easy balsamic asparagus

ingredients 

• Ritrovo 6-Year Balsamico (or your selection from our other balsamic vinegars) for finishing
• Grove 45 Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• M. Gilles Hervy Sel Gris with Herbes 
• India Tree Rainbow Peppercorns
• 2 Bunches Green Asparagus (or more if you are expecting more than 5 guests)
• 1/2 to 1 Lemon

DIRECTIONS 

This is so easy that you really can't mess it up, so I won't burden the recipe with too many exact measurements. Preheat oven to 425. Wash asparagus and "bend and snap" each piece. (As you hold asparagus at the top and base, you'll notice that it naturally snaps as you bend it, removing the tougher bottoms for your compost or waste. Place on rimmed oven baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, squeeze lemon juice over, and coat with salt and pepper. "Mix around" with your hands and spread evenly. Bake in oven until tender but still green, about 10-15 minutes. Drizzle with balsamico. Taste, and add finishing salt if necessary. Serve. 

A Note from Erin: I've made the mistake of drizzling with balsamic prior to cooking. The sugars char and turn bitter, so be sure you wait until after cooking to add it. 

Headline: Leprechuans Shun Green Beer for Swamp Angel, Short + Stout

"Leprechauns are given to excess. Nothing appeals to a Leprechaun like a binge of whiskey, Guinness, pipe tobacco ,and snuff, and despite their small stature, they can handle surprising quantities of alcohol."                    -Colin Chapman, Leprechuanologist

With mixed reviews about the health implications of food dyes and green beer feeling "done," we wanted to offer you a couple of alternatives to satiate even your trickiest leprechauns this St. Patrick's Day. Stir up these easy cocktails and they'll be sure to grant all three of your wishes; just be careful what you ask for! 

SWAMP ANGEL 

• Champagne
• BITTERMILK No. 2
• Cucumber slices

DIRECTIONS

Pour Champagne into flute. Add a splash of Bittermilk No. 2.  Garnish with a cucumber slice, either floating or sliced and positioned on the side of the glass. 

Notes from Amy: The champagne and Bittermilk No. 2 portions of the recipe are courtesy of Bittermilk. I added cucumber slices for a touch of green and a compliment to the Elderflower essence in the Bittermilk. My friend and I made green mimosas for our local St Patrick’s Day party in Baton Rouge, but this would be a great alternative as the Bittermilk is much lighter than OJ and far less acidic.

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SHORT + STOUT

• Owl's Brew Coco-Lada
• Guinness or other stout beer 
• Orange slices

DIRECTIONS

Fill a pilsner glass or beer mug (frozen, if you have time) half full with Owl's Brew Coco-Lada and top with Guinness or other stout. Garnish with fresh orange slice. This recipe courtesy of The Owl's Brew. 

Notes from Amy: The coco-lada has a creamy flavor which is a compliment to the stout beer, and cuts its bitterness. I’m not usually a big Guinness fan, but the addition of the Owl’s Brew really created new tastes!  Be sure to chill the Coco-Lada before making these, if you don’t like warmer beer. 

Feast Like St. Patrick!

Green beer, green clothing, shamrocks, green food coloring . . . The Savory Pantry wants to help you create something unexpected this St. Patrick’s Day while still helping you guard against pinches! Whether you are celebrating the arrival of Christianity in Ireland or just having some green-tinted fun, we hope you’ll enjoy this post-full of good taste.

Our two “wow” food recipes below thrive on Beekman 1802’s scrumptious Ommegang Beer Jellies. Beekman 1802’s tag line is “cultivate a better life,” and I sure feel that I have after getting creative with these special jellies. The Ommegang name comes from a brewery neighboring Beekman 1802 in Cooperstown, New York.

The Savory Pantry's "Hot Pots of Gold" will spice and sweeten your St. Pat's celebration with jalepenos, cheddar, and Beekman 1802 Ommegang Abbey Ale Beer Jelly.

HOT POTS OF GOLD

• 1 Package Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry Cups (24)
• 1 Medium Block of Good, Sharp Cheddar
• 3–6 Oz Diced Jalapeño Peppers (or same amount sautéed from fresh)
• 3–4 Oz Beekman 1802 Ommegang Abbey Ale Beer Jelly

DIRECTIONS

Prepare Puff Pastry Cups according to directions (20 minutes. If you can’t find these, other brands would probably be fine but these were flaky, crispy, and perfect.) While Cups are baking, sauté your fresh jalapenos if you’re going that route or grab your jar if you’re doing it the quick way (this is what I did). Shred your block of cheese. 

Layer jalapeños and shredded cheese in a bowl and stir. When deciding how much jalapeño to add based on your tastes and those of your guests, remember that the Pastry Cups will cut some of the heat. When timer goes off for Pastry Cups and they are puffed and browned, push middles down with the end of a wooden spoon. Add filling to Cups. 

Return filled cups to the oven for about 3 minutes or until cheese is melted—watch closely. Allow to cool slightly. Spoon Beekman 1802 Ommegang Abbey Ale Beer Jelly atop and serve! Makes 24 pieces.

A Note from Erin: Everyone at your St. Pat’s party will be asking for this recipe! I can’t tell you how good it is and it’s so easy. The beer jelly takes it over the top and I don’t think you could go wrong choosing the Abbey Ale or Hennepin for this recipe. I left half of what I made on the counter and went for a walk. When I returned, my husband had made them disappear like that elusive pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!

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Grilled Bread with Brie, Arkansas Peppered Ham, and Beer Jelly

• 3–4 Oz Beekman 1802 Ommegang Hennepin Beer Jelly
• 1 Baguette, Ciabatta, or Freshly Baked Bread
• 16 Small Slices of Arkansas Peppered Ham
• 1 Large Wedge Good Brie
• Titone Organic 2015 Olio Nuovo Olive Oil

Great recipe for leftover Easter ham! Bring sliced Arkansas Peppered Ham to room temperature or warm it slightly. I used a baguette and sliced it long-ways, but depending on your crowd, you could do smaller or larger pieces of any kind of good bread. Brush or drizzle bread with olive oil and grill in grill pan until grill marks appear (or if you don’t have a grill pan, toast in oven. Just don’t let bread get too crispy.)

Place 1-2 slices of ham on warm bread. I included the rind and it was a great, bitter complement to the sweet jelly, but don’t use rind if you don’t prefer it. Top with dollops of Beekman 1802 Ommegang Abbey Ale. Makes 8 portions as pictured here. 

A Note from Erin: Okay. This is awesome. Slightly bitter brie rind and creamy center, slightly spicy peppered ham, sweet jelly with unexpected hints of beer. Super easy and ready in minutes. This is going to be my new go-to brunch item! It’s perfect because you come down on both sides of the ongoing sweet or savory brunch debate. Make this now and I promise it will become a household favorite! 

MAKE IT A MEAL! 

Pair this grilled bread with our Andre Laurent Traditional French Sauerkraut and J&M Aged Cheddar Cheese Straws and you've got a meal. French Sauerkraut? When I first read the label, it seemed to make as much sense at a German beignet. But remember the Peace of Westphalia in 1648 from your world history flashcards? The French annexation of Alsace and Lorraine led to the entry of sauerkraut into French culture. Fermented foods have been receiving much recent attention for their health benefits. This "Coeur de Chou" (or heart of the cabbage) is slightly less briney than its German doppelganger. and draws repeat customers. 

Sarsaparilla and Soda Fountains

The first time I heard the word sarsaparilla, it filled my grandfather’s mouth with such funny sounds I thought it was surely a joke. But of course it was real—what I came to know as a soda drink that tasted a bit like a root beer or Dr. Pepper, only not so sweet. Vague and malleable as memories are, I don’t know whether we had our first sarsaparilla together at the Majestic Hotel soda fountain in downtown Hot Springs—just a couple of blocks from where The Savory Pantry now stands—or whether I’ve blended memories, but that fountain is where I can still sit next to him when I want to recapture childhood. And my childhood with him was full of fanciful notions turned bona fide amazements like sarsaparilla. 

Soda Fountain at The Majestic Hotel, Hot Springs, AR where my grandfather used to take me for soda and ice cream treats (circa 1980s, I suspect, judging by the theatrical hair and the Dexters on the kid closest to the camera). Courtesy Garland County Historical Society. 

I’ve since learned that what I thought of in the 80s as the “old fashioned soda fountain” must have felt like a comfortable part of the neighborhood for my grandfather, a hometown doctor now fifteen years deceased. It played that role for countless others who visited it for both social and medicinal purposes. According to NPR’s Morning Edition contributor Darcy O'Neil  (author of Fix the Pumps, a history of the golden age of soda fountains), there was a soda counter in nearly every American city in 1875, when it was not unlike a local saloon. The soda fountain often sat opposite the pharmacy, so that the medicines it dispensed could be disguised in various sodas and elixirs (many of which were touted as having their own health benefits).

In those soda fountains, sarsaparilla was imbibed as a treatment for everything from rheumatism to skin care, impotence to syphilis. The vine, native to Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America, is harvested for its root, which is then ground. Wondering how to pronounce it? There’s debate between sass and sars—consider the stances of Merriam-Webster , "The Herb Guy" (this video also demonstrates how to identify sarsaparilla plants in the wild),  Emma Saying, and others. 

Sarsaparilla long fell into disuse and out of the American lexicon, but is now experiencing a rebirth. Makers like Pink House Alchemy are helping bring it back to our bars, tables, and mouths, and its flavor adds an element of interest and complexity to all kinds of recipes. I'm glad for the role that rebirth has played in encouraging me to grow closer to my grandfather once again as I dash it on my food and in my drink today. 

TWO-INGREDIENT BANANA SARSAPARILLA FRO-YO

• 4 Ripe Bananas, Frozen
• 8-10 Dashes Pink House Alchemy Sarsaparilla Bitters

DIRECTIONS

Two ingredients? Yep! That’s it. This recipe is super easy, but requires some forethought as banana slices must freeze overnight. Peel bananas. Cut in slices. Arrange on two plates and place in freezer overnight.

Next day: remove plates from freezer. Slices may have to sit out for a minute (unless you want to attack them with a fork like I did) as they’ll be stuck to the plate. Place slices in blender or food processor. Add 8-10 dashes of Pink House Alchemy Sarsaparilla Bitters.

Blend until smooth.

Note that you may have to add a bit of water, depending on your machine. Once blended, taste to make sure you like the amount of bitters used, and add more if preferred. Serve immediately. Makes fro-yo for 3-4. 

Alternatives: Stir in chopped nuts after blending. Skip bitters and add peanut butter or fold in berries after blending.

A Note from Erin: “I wanted to reminisce about the Majestic Soda Fountain, but with an eye toward clean eating. Grandpa loved frozen grapes, so I thought this creamy banana offering would be right up his alley. I used my kitchen staple—a Vitamix—which did an incredible job.” Erin writes, edits, and joyfully flits about her kitchen for The Savory Pantry.

CHERRY SARSAPARILLA COOLER

• 2 Ounces Cherry Liqueur 
• 4 Ounces Sparkling Water or Club Soda
• 4 Dashes Pink House Alchemy Sarsaparilla Bitters
• 1-2 Woodford Reserve Bourbon Cherries

DIRECTIONS

Choose a double old fashioned glass and fill with ice. Pour in cherry liqueur and dash in Sarsaparilla Bitters. Pour sparkling water or soda to desired level. Stir. Garnish with Woodford Reserve Bourbon Cherries. Sit down, kick your feet up, and enjoy!

A Note from Erin: "This definitely has a whiskey flavor, so probably not for you if that doesn't sound appetizing!" 

Meet the Maker: Pink House Alchemy’s Emily Lawson

Emily Lawson of Pink House Alchemy

When I caught up with Pink House Alchemy’s co-owner Emily Lawson by phone, she was headed to her Fayetteville, AR, gym to sweat out a cold. To this entrepreneur, even a fever is a project that can be conquered.

Pink House Alchemy is named for the 115-year-old pink house in Fayetteville where Emily lived when Pink House Alchemy was launched. “It also shortens to ‘PH’ which is a hook for me as a food scientist.” Behind the thoughtful crafting of syrups, shrubs, and bitters is a long love affair with food that started with Emily’s first job in a bakery. “I’m a chef by training,” Emily shared. She attended culinary school in Telluride, CO, and “cooked [her] way through [her] 20s,” seeking out culinary experiences and exploring life in storied cities like New Orleans, Eureka Springs, and Telluride.  

“I really meandered in my 20s and learned a lot. I finally decided I’d better get a four-year degree under my belt, so I went to the University of Arkansas where my majors were dietetics and biology. I became enthralled with food science. I loved bartending, so there was sort of a natural segue into cocktails. Also, if you’re going to launch a business, it’s smart to spot a trend and follow it.”

Emily's display at a Pink House Alchemy tasting in The Savory Pantry, Hot Springs.

We can all witness a brimming interest in specialty cocktails and freshly inspired combinations, but what factors are driving that movement? Why cocktails now? “People are paying more attention to what they’re putting in their bodies in general. The days of pounding Diet Cokes and Whiskeys is going by. People are no longer accepting additives and chemicals because they know those things aren’t good for them. There’s also a desire to learn about what we eat and drink, and to consider its composition . . . even to experiment and see if we can take an active role and even do better. Take the fresh juice movement, for example. There’s now recognition that not only is it not necessary to buy OJ in a bottle to make a screwdriver, but that the purchased product has a dominant role in the ultimate outcome of the drink. What does it mean for the taste of that drink if we juice it ourselves? What does it mean if we use better ingredients?”

A Pink House Alchemy Margarita crafted with Pink Pineapple Rosemary Shrub

Emily sees the success of Pink House as partially coming from the unique flavor combinations it brings to bars and kitchens, like the Strawberry Black Pepper Shrub and Pineapple Rosemary Shrub that are in The Savory Pantry. “There is a reason why there are food partnerships and cheese pairings; certain flavors are natural mates like orange juice with breakfast, wine with cheese, Coke with a cheeseburger. They just make sense and taste right together.”

And Pink House Alchemy is a natural mate for The Natural State. PH was able to expand its production dramatically thanks to the Arkansas Food Innovation program at the University of Arkansas, which uses a fee-based system to provide access to facilities for nascent food production businesses in the state that would otherwise struggle to comply with federal and state regulations. “We are not 100% organic,” says Emily, but we pride ourselves on ethically sourcing, working as hard as we can to source our ingredients as close to home as possible. All our berries, for example, are from Arkansas—blueberries, strawberries, elderberries. Our Caramel Black Apple Syrup is made from Arkansas black apples.”

Before she hopped on the elliptical, Emily shared what she’d tell anyone looking to get experimental with PH products. "For a solid basic bar, you’ll want a good selection of bitters and syrups; you’ll need bitters for everything you do. A good tonic. A solid grenadine. A Sodastream is a great investment to carbonate cocktails and sodas. Beyond the bar, our Lavender Syrup and our Cardamom Syrup can do everything—think breads, muffins, oatmeal, icing, ice cream.  “Every four months we come out with something seasonal—right now it’s the Caramel Black Apple Syrup. For what’s going to ultimately end up on menus down the line, follow the trend of what producers are doing because we’re looking at everything and considering it all.” And after just one conversation, it’s clear that Pink House Alchemy is.  

 Look for Erin’s upcoming Taste.Savor.Share Blog post related to Pink House Alchemy’s Sarsaparilla bitters.