Sun is getting baptized this Sunday and we are having the family and a few friends over afterwards. One of the things I want to serve at the little party is gumbo made with one of the andouille sausage links I recently purchased. The gumbo also calls for a bit of ham. I have never found any store-bought ham that I like for gumbos and red beans.

A few years ago, a friend told me about this good eats secret: the Honey Baked Ham Store sells its bones for five dollars. Why spend five dollars for a bone, you ask? Because for that five dollars you get this:

1. The bone added to red or white beans or black eyed peas even without much ham adds a lot of punch to the dish.
2. These bones come with at least three pounds of meat. I am not kidding. These bones have a lot of ham still left on them. We almost always have enough to add to the pot of beans or gumbo we are making with plenty left over. We give some to the cat and the dogs.
3. The bone comes jointed and is really two bones. We have two dogs. Once we are done cooking the bones, we clean them and give one each to the dogs. It is quite a treat for them.

So, a bone and ham for beans or gumbo, treats for the pets, as well as extra ham for all around noshing. It is so worth five dollars!!

Today, I go to Honey Baked Ham Store to get my bone. I smack my head on the car door getting Sun out of the car and stumble inside. I ask if they have any bones (and cross my fingers, because they do not always have one). And am told no. Dammit, I think. But then the clerk tells me, “We are out of the regular ones. . . But we have some cinnamon and apple glazed ones.” So I begin to think, “Cinnamon and apple glaze? For a gumbo? Well, I usually use a honey glaze and that works fine. . . . Should I try back later this week? Will I have the time for that? Seriously, this will work fine. Yup, I’ll try it.” Yes, all that crossed my mind in the span of four seconds. Then the clerk tells me this: “This glaze is only being offered for a limited time. So we can’t sell you the bone. We can give it to you, though.”

Wait. Did I seriously bump my head back at the car or did she just offer me a free five dollar ham bone? All thoughts cease in my mind and I look at this clerk real good. She’s looking back at me, waiting for an answer. “Sure,” I reply, I’ll bite. She went to her freezer, grabbed a bone, double bagged it, handed it to me, said, “Enjoy it!” and smiled.

Am I in a coma from knocking my head? Did I die and go to Heaven? Can this really be true? It was true! It did happen!!! HOT DAMN, people, this seriously made my day. And when I tell my family about it at the christening, boy, are they going to be jealous!

Here’s a picture of my magnificent free five dollar ham bone:

Makes my mouth water just looking at it. Oh, and the taste? I am not a big fan of cinnamon and I had concerns it’d be too sweet for a gumbo. But honestly, it is no more sweeter than the regular honey ones and it is going to be hard not to eat all the ham between now and Saturday when I make the gumbo–well, except for the fact that there is SO MUCH ham on it, I don’t think it’s possible for me to eat it all even if I tried.