Josh Pinhack and Susan Sigel Goldsmith at Bootstrap Farm look over the fresh hams that will be smoked tomorrow.
Josh Pinhack and Susan Sigel Goldsmith at Bootstrap Farm Club—the farm sells other produce, too.
Bootstrap Farm is in Cataumet on Route 28A.
Josh Pinhack and Susan Sigel Goldsmith at Bootstrap Farm look over the fresh hams that will be smoked tomorrow.
Josh Pinhack and Susan Sigel Goldsmith at Bootstrap Farm Club—the farm sells other produce, too.
Bootstrap Farm is in Cataumet on Route 28A.
“Nothing tastes quite like a smoked fresh ham,” Josh Pinhack told me when we talked at Bootstrap Farm Club in Cataumet, with the owner, Susan Sigel Goldsmith. Tomorrow, Saturday, October 8, they will be smoking two 20-pound hams at the farm club—and offering free tastes to whomever comes by for sampling.
Josh works at the Fireplace and Stove Center, located on Route 28A in Cataumet, less than a mile away from Susan’s shop. “I’ve been smoking food for about 15 years now along the way,” he said with a smile.
“The Stove Center is owned by my brother-in-law Todd Gorell. We carry fireplaces, wood stoves, and pellet stoves, along with smokers, grills and outdoor kitchens,” Josh continued. Susan added that both businesses opened just before the pandemic, and as neighbors they have worked together to support each other.
“I love places like the Farm Club,” Josh stated. “The quality of the food is significantly better. I know it costs more, but the price is justified. Local farmers need support, and this (shopping fresh, shopping local, and shopping organic) is one way to assist them.”
Susan explained that the flavor of the organic pork and chicken she sells is very different from supermarket meat. “You get the flavor of what the animals eat,” she said, “and in this case, the pigs have been fed acorns and dairy products, resulting in a buttery, acorn flavor.” Josh added, “In this case it even changes the way the fat melts—it’s not chewy—it just melts better.”
The backstory is as follows: “Last spring, Bootstrap bought a whole pig from the Farm School, an off-Cape (but local) nonprofit in Athol. They run a program with Falmouth Academy,” Susan stated, “so I had a relationship there, and the pork is amazing. Most of the food they raise they donate to the needy. They sold one pig commercially, and it was this one that we are cooking on Saturday, that we purchased”
She continued, “They are about three hours away and it was quite a bit of work to coordinate delivery. It was only after they were gone and I started opening the boxes to inventory, that I saw that the pig had been cut wrong. I had two giant 20-plus-pound bone-in hams, nearly impossible to sell. They were fine in the freezers but I had to work on a solution for what we later called the ‘big ham situation.’”
Susan felt that going back to the farm was not really a solution, given that they were so far away. “In many ways they had done me a favor by selling me the pig. I could take them [the hams] to my processor, thaw them, cut them, repackage them and sell them, but I don’t like to refreeze the meat. I tried to sell them whole, but to no avail.”
So she reached out to her neighbors, Josh and Todd. “They are our business neighbors and local smoking experts. They were super nice, and Josh has agreed to smoke both hams. So we decided to give the meat away to the community this Saturday, October 8, at the Farm Club, from noon to 3 PM.”
Susan said they called their project “the big ham situation—Josh provided me with information, and suggested I read the article on how to smoke a raw ham (https://theonlinegrill.com/how-to-smoke-a-raw-ham). He’s going to do one sweet and one spicy, so people can taste the difference.”
Josh repeated that nothing tastes like this fresh ham. “People are afraid of something like this big, primal cut—they are often intimidated by the size, the money, and the time it takes to prepare it. I love a challenge like this; the way these pigs are raised, and fed is really quite something.”
Susan added that the “baby-sitting part of the process is off-putting to many home cooks.” But Josh countered that “now they have WiFi controls, so you can adjust the heat when you are away from your smoker. Once you know the process, it’s really pretty easy to do.”
Any other questions you might have about this type of cooking can be answered on Saturday. The taste of these hams is dramatically different from grocery store purchases, so Susan added that she is willing to help someone source a large ham, directly from a farmer, or from a farmers market where meat is sold.
After the smoking and the tasting, there will be leftovers. Josh suggested using the meat in quesadillas, egg rolls, tacos, and chili. And, of course, macaroni and cheese. Here are Josh’s instructions for smoking these hams, along with a couple of my favorite mac and cheese recipes that would be wonderful with any leftovers. I suggest adding 2 to 3 cups of diced smoked fresh ham to each.
½ cup each: kosher salt and brown sugar
¼ cup each: brown sugar and granulated garlic
1 cup beer – something light and local
1 tbsp each: granulated onion and smoked paprika
2 tbsp dark chili powder (such as ancho chile powder)
Remove the skin from the hams and discard or save to make pork rinds; score the remaining fat to make 1-inch squares. Coat the hams with yellow mustard, and season liberally with the rub.
Allow to sit for 4 hours, preferably overnight in the refrigerator. Thirty minutes before cooking, take the hams out of refrigerator and preheat smoker to 225 degrees. Josh recommends using a fruit wood like apple or cherry, or even maple. If you are injecting the hams, inject evenly all over; once the smoker is preheated, place the ham on the smoker, fat side up—the hams will take at least 20 minutes a pound, so plan accordingly. Spray the hams every hour with remaining injection liquid until they have reached an internal temp of 135°F; cover them loosely with aluminum foil and continue cooking until they reach an internal temperature of 165°F. Remove to a serving platter and let rest for at least 30 minutes before slicing.
12 oz each: coarsely grated extra-sharp Cheddar cheese and American cheese or jack cheese
1 lb elbow pasta, boiled in salted water until just tender, drained, and rinsed under cold water
Heat oven to 375°F and use one tablespoon butter to thickly grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Combine grated cheeses and set aside two heaping cups for topping. In a large bowl, toss together the pasta, cheeses, cayenne (if using) and salt to taste. Place in prepared pan and evenly pour milk over surface. Sprinkle reserved cheese on top, dot with remaining butter and bake, uncovered, 45 minutes; raise heat to 400 degrees and bake 15 to 20 minutes more, until crusty on top and bottom.
1 cup cottage cheese (not low-fat)
One lb sharp or extra-sharp Cheddar, grated, divided
Heat oven to 375°F and position an oven rack in upper third of oven; use 1 tablespoon butter to grease a 9-inch round or square baking pan. In a blender, purée cottage cheese, milk, mustard, cayenne, nutmeg and salt and pepper; reserve a quarter-cup grated Cheddar for topping. In a large bowl, combine remaining grated Cheddar, milk mixture and uncooked pasta; pour into prepared pan, cover tightly with foil and bake 30 minutes. Uncover pan, stir gently, sprinkle with reserved cheese and dot with remaining tablespoon butter. Bake, uncovered, 30 minutes more, until browned. Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving.
Cheesy Baked Pumpkin Pasta With Kale
Butter, for greasing the pan
1 lb medium pasta shells or tubes, like conchiglie rigate or penne
1 bunch kale (about 1 pound), ribs removed, chopped into bite-size pieces
1 heaping tbsp each: chopped fresh rosemary and thyme, plus more for garnish
1 heaping cup each: coarsely grated Parmesan, Gruyère, and fontina or mozzarella
15-oz can pumpkin purée
1 tsp kosher salt, plus more for pasta water
½ cup each: whole milk ricotta and heavy cream
Heat oven to 500°F degrees and butter a shallow 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta in the boiling water for 4 minutes, adding the kale for the last minute. Drain the pasta and kale, rinse under cold water, then transfer to a large bowl along with the red-pepper flakes and the chopped herbs. In a blender, add the pumpkin, garlic, salt, pepper, cream and vegetable broth. Blend until smooth. (If you don’t want to use a blender, add the pumpkin, salt and pepper to a large bowl and use a spoon to break it up into a smooth mixture. Slowly whisk in the cream and vegetable broth until mixture is smooth, then grate in the garlic.) Add the sauce to the bowl with the pasta. Add in most of the grated cheese, reserving about one-half cup, and stir to coat. Transfer the pasta into the baking dish, then dollop the ricotta over the top and sprinkle remaining grated cheese. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until brown and bubbly (if you want the pasta really browned, broil it for 3 to 5 minutes, watching carefully). Allow the dish to cool for 5 to 10 minutes, and garnish with additional chopped herbs before serving.
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