Ham Paté en Croute
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This Ham Paté en Croute is not nearly so difficult to make as it might appear. Simply hollow out a loaf of French bread and stuff with ground-ham mixture that is highly seasoned with onion, garlic, mustard, chives, and Worcestershire sauce. It is perfect to pack and take on picnics and can be made well ahead of time.
INGREDIENTS
1/4 pound butter, softened
2 cups ground cooked, smoked or boiled, ham
1 tablespoon grated onion
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
3 tablespoons heavy cream
2 teaspoons strong prepared mustard
1 teaspoon dry mustard
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 tablespoons chopped chives
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 loaf French bread, about 8 inches long and 3 inches in diameterPut butter in the small bowl of an electric mixer and beat at high speed until very light and fluffy. While mixer is running, gradually add ground ham, a little at a time. Beat thoroughly after each addition and scrape side of bowl with a rubber spatula as necessary.
When ham-butter mixture is thoroughly combined, add onion, garlic, heavy cream, prepared mustard, dry mustard, parsley, chives, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce. Beat again, scraping side of bowl as necessary until mixture is well combined and almost smooth.
Remove bowl from mixture and scrape off beaters. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator until it is firm enough to spread. This should take several hours. (If desired, this much can be completed 1 day in advance.)
Using a large bread knife, cut off the ends of the loaf of French bread; reserve. Using a long slender knife, cut out and remove soft insides of bread, leaving a shell that is about 1/4-inch thick. (Soft insides can be dried and used later for bread crumbs.)
Stand bread upright on one end. Using a spoon, gently push ham mixture into hollow crust, packing it firmly and filling it completely. Replace ends of bread and wrap in aluminum foil; refrigerate for several hours or until bread is cold and can be sliced easily.
Bread can be stuffed with ham mixture up to 24 hours before you plan to serve it. To serve, cut bread into slices and 1/4-inch thick.
One loaf will make about 30 (1/4-inch) thick slices and will serve about 6 people as a main course.