
Ham Buns
Jennifer Owens doesn’t know where her mother, Frances, first found the recipe for these ham buns, but they have been a part of her life since childhood in Easley, S.C. It may have come from relatives in Tennessee, as a similar recipe appears as “Hallelujah Ham Loaves” in “Dinner on the Diner,” a 1983 cookbook from the Junior League of Chattanooga. The warm appetizer has won fans wherever Ms. Owens goes. Her mother’s original formula called for raw onions, but Ms. Owens now sautés them. Use good smoked ham, either holiday leftovers or from the deli counter. As the buns bake, the butter pools at the bottom, toasting up the base of these irresistible bite-size sandwiches. Sara Bonisteel
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