EASTER By Christy Rost   One of my all-time favorite Easter holidays was celebrated in a grand country home in the Loire Valley. Just a few hours drive from our Paris home, we had the estate to ourselves, thanks to the generosity of dear friends. Leaving the hustle and bustle of Paris behind for a few days was a welcome change. Our young sons loved the opportunity to run and play in the yard, after so many months of living in a “flat” in the heart of Paris. Because it was Easter, one of our first activities after our arrival was to color eggs for the Easter baskets. Unfortunately, we ran into a bit of trouble with this usually simple tradition. The only dye we could find in French markets contained a heavy oil base, and the color stuck to the eggs in uneven streaks. While the eggs looked beautiful, I can still recall the panic my husband, Randy and I felt when we realized the oily dye wouldn’t rinse off the china cups we used to color the eggs. It was very late that night before Easter, and we tried every cleaning solution we could find in our friend’s kitchen. After many scary moments and a lot of elbow grease, we finally succeeded in removing the dye from the beautiful assortment of cups and bowls. What a relief! These days, preparing for Easter contains fewer late-night adventures. While Randy and I still color eggs every year, it’s a much more uneventful process, except for an occasional dropped egg. But I loved the simplicity of our Easter in France – a young family celebrating the holiday with whatever was at hand. You’ll love this week’s recipe for Fruit Glazed Ham Steaks for its simplicity, flavor, and colorful appearance. Instead of a large, bone-in ham shank, which is too large and complicated for many families and holiday gatherings, this delicious recipe utilizes a much smaller and easier-to-handle ham loaf. The meat is sliced, sautéed, then garnished with a gorgeous fruit compote, flavored with brown sugar, molasses, and a hint of cinnamon and cloves. It’s an easy, but still traditional approach to celebrating Easter. Fruit Glazed Ham Steaks Ingredients: 1 4-pound ham loaf, sliced into ¼ -inch thick slices 1 ½ cups peach nectar ¼ cup brown sugar ½ teaspoon molasses ¼ teaspoon ground cloves 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon 1 ¼ cups dried apricots 1 8-ounce can pineapple chunks, drained, juice reserved ¼ cup dried cranberries ¼ cup raisins 1 teaspoon cornstarch Maraschino cherries Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Cook the ham slices, a few at a time, until they are lightly browned. Transfer the cooked ham to a serving platter, cover, and place in a warm oven while preparing the fruit glaze. Add the peach nectar to the skillet, scraping with a wooden spoon to loosen brown bits from the bottom. Stir in brown sugar, molasses, cloves, cinnamon, apricots, pineapple chunks, cranberries, and raisins. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is bubbly and the fruit begins to soften. Place the cornstarch in a small bowl and whisk in 1 tablespoon of the reserved pineapple juice to form a slurry. Stir the cornstarch mixture into the fruit mixture, along with the Maraschino cherries and cook several minutes until the mixture has thickened. To serve, spoon some of the fruit over the ham and pour the remainder into a small serving bowl. Recipe serves 8 to 10.  Get more of Christy Rost's recipes in her archives. Click here. Do you have any questions, comments or suggestions? Email: jwdineline@aol.com