Pineapple and Brown Sugar Ham

A few years ago, Mom got really sick right before Easter and spent several days in the hospital.  She was still pretty weak once she got to come home, so some of her teacher friends cooked Easter dinner and brought it to our house the Friday before Easter.  She had a appointment with her doctor that day, and when we got home we walked into a house that smelled incredible thanks to her good friend Beth's amazing pineapple and brown sugar ham.  Since then, we have co-opted this recipe into our family's recipe repertoire.  

Ingredients:

One ham butt

2 pound bag of light brown sugar

1 large can of sliced pineapple

Other than handling a dead pig's butt, there is nothing too difficult about this recipe, but I've decided to include some visual instructions anyway.  Start with a raw ham.  Mom always buys a butt instead of a shank because the butt includes less bone.  In a large baking pan, lay foil length-wise and width-wise.  Pour about a cup of brown sugar on top of the foil and place the ham, untrimmed, on top of the sugar. 

Next, layer the ham with one large can of pineapple slices.  Some of the slices will have to be attached with toothpicks.  Because the ham has to be wrapped in foil to cook properly, the toothpicks will need to be inserted almost fully into the ham.  After the pineapple slices are affixed to the ham, pour the juice from the pineapple onto the ham and pour the remaining brown sugar from a two-pound bag of sugar onto the ham.

Cover the ham with foil, making sure no meat will be exposed directly to the heat of the oven.  This will probably require a couple of pieces of foil in addition to what is already in the pan.

Place the ham in a 350-degree oven.  It will cook for approximately an hour per pound an will be falling-off-the-bone tender when it's done.  Allow the ham to rest for about an hour, then slice and serve.