CURTIS STONE: his seasonal favourites

Renowned chef Curtis Stone shares his Christmas recipes. A succulent glazed ham and a twist on the traditional pav will make stunning centrepieces for your festive table.

Best-ever glazed ham

SERVES 8 WITH LEFTOVERS PREP AND COOK TIME 2 HOURS 15 MINUTES (+ RESTING TIME) 1 half leg ham, bone in (about 4.5kg) 2 carrots, peeled, cut into large chunks 2 celery sticks, cut into large chunks 1 onion, cut into large chunks 4 ripe peaches 2 tablespoons caster sugar watercress, to serve

PEACH AND RUM GLAZE

40g butter 1 small onion, coarsely chopped 2 ripe peaches, de-stoned, coarsely chopped 2 whole star anise ¾ teaspoon ground cardamom ¾ cup (180ml) dark rum ¾ cup (180ml) white wine vinegar 1 cup (220g) firmly packed brown sugar 1 Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced). Run a small sharp knife down the back of the ham. Using your fingers, gently separate skin from fat. Remove and discard skin. Run knife over fat to lightly score all over in a diamond pattern. Place ham in a baking dish with carrots, celery and onion. Cover ham with foil. Bake for 1 hour. 2 PEACH AND RUM GLAZE Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, melt butter. Add onion and cook, stirring often, for 4 minutes. Add peaches, star anise and cardamom and cook, stirring occasionally, for 7 minutes. Add rum and ½ cup (125ml) of the vinegar and cook for 5 minutes or until reduced by one-quarter. Add brown sugar and cook, stirring, for 4 minutes or until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and stir in remaining ¼ cup (60ml) vinegar. Set aside for 10 minutes to develop the flavours. Remove star anise and discard. Carefully transfer glaze to a blender and blend until smooth. Reserve 1 cup of the glaze for serving. 3 Brush ham all over with remaining glaze. Bake ham, basting with glaze every 15 minutes, for a further 1 hour or until ham is warmed through and evenly caramelised. 4 Set ham aside for 20 minutes to rest. Strain any juices from the baking dish into a tall, narrow jug. Skim off and discard any fat that rises to the surface. Stir juices into reserved glaze for serving. 5 Meanwhile, to make caramelised peaches, preheat chargrill pan over medium-high heat. Halve and de-stone 4 ripe peaches. Dip halves into caster sugar. Lightly oil pan; cook peaches, cut-side down, for 1 minute or until caramelised. 6 Carve the ham and serve with the glaze mixture, caramelised peaches and watercress.

Smashed pavlova tray with peaches, thyme and mascarpone

SERVES 12 PREP AND COOK TIME 2 HOURS 30 MINUTES (+ COOLING AND STANDING TIME) 6 large egg whites, room temperature 1½ cups (330g) caster sugar 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar ½ teaspoon vanilla extract ¼ teaspoon sea salt flakes 2 tablespoons cornflour 4 white or yellow peaches, ripe but firm 1 cup (220g) caster sugar, extra 1 lemon, rind finely grated, juiced 250g fresh raspberries 250g mascarpone 1½ cups (375ml) cream 3 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves picked 1 lemon, rind finely grated, extra 1 Position rack in centre of oven and preheat oven to 150°C (130°C fanforced). Line a 40cm x 33cm (approximately) rimmed baking tray with baking paper. 2 In the bowl of stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat egg whites until foamy. Gradually add the sugar, beating on medium-high speed for 10-15 minutes or until firm, glossy peaks form. Beat in vinegar, vanilla and salt. Sift cornflour over meringue and gently fold in. 3 Spoon 8 large dollops of meringue onto the prepared tray. Using an offset spatula or palette knife, gently spread meringue into an even layer. 4 Place meringue in the oven, immediately reduce temperature to 105°C (95°C fan-forced). Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes, or until meringue is crisp on the outside but still has a marshmallow-like centre and puffs ever so slightly. Turn off oven, prop oven door open with wooden spoon and leave meringue in oven to cool. 5 Gently run a small palette knife along edges of pavlova to loosen from tray. Place another baking tray over pavlova and invert, bottom side up. Remove paper. Invert pavlova back into original tray. Lift corner and break pavlova into large random-sized pieces. Place in an airtight container until serving. 6 Halve peaches and remove stones. Cut each peach into 8 wedges. In a large bowl, gently toss peaches with ¼ cup (55g) of the extra sugar and the lemon rind and lemon juice to coat. Let stand at room temperature, tossing occasionally, for 30 minutes or until juices form. 7 Meanwhile, in a blender, purée raspberries with the remaining ¾ cup (165g) sugar until smooth. Push purée through a fine sieve into a bowl, discarding seeds. Chill raspberry sauce. 8 In a medium bowl, use a hand-held electric mixer to beat mascarpone and cream until firm peaks form (don’t overbeat). 9 Close to serving, scatter pavlova on a large platter, slightly overlapping. Dollop mascarpone mixture on top of some pavlova pieces. Top with peach mixture; drizzle with raspberry sauce. Sprinkle with thyme leaves and extra lemon zest.