Quince Glazed Ham

Step 1: To make quince glaze, place all ingredients in a large saucepan and bring to boil. Gently boil, stirring occasionally, for about 10 to 15 minutes, or until thickened and remove and discard the star anise.

Step 2: Make a wavy, decorative cut through ham rind, about 10cm from shank end of leg, making this cut all the way around.

Step 3: To remove rind, run thumb around edge of rind, just under skin and start pulling rind from the opposite end to the shank and continue to peel away up to the decorative cut and remove the rind.

Step 4: Using a small, very sharp knife, carefully make shallow cuts into the ham fat, about 2cm apart, in a wave or diamond pattern but don’t cut all the way through the fat when scoring or it will spread when exposed to the heat.

Step 5: Wrap shank end in foil to prevent over-browning and place the ham in a large roasting pan and brush glaze evenly over ham fat.

Step 6: Cook in a moderate oven (180C), brushing with glaze halfway through, for 40 minutes and then discard foil and brush with glaze again and cook for a further 20 minutes, or until ham is browned and then remove from oven and set aside on a tray to cool slightly.

Step 7: Serve warm ham garnished with olive leaves. if using.