Thought about roasting your own ham? Traceable and perfect for spring picnics

One of life’s greatest pleasures has to be the quintessentially British picnic. There’s something so brilliantly simple about eating outdoors, yet so utterly blissful.The sun shining, a blanket on the ground and nothing but blue skies – all of this made better with the simple addition of a few cold cuts, some farmhouse cheddar, a rustic loaf and a bottle of wine. Sounds great, doesn’t it?So what would be in your picnic basket? All of the above, or would you go for the more traditional sandwiches, crisps and a pork pie combination?Whatever you decide to take with you, one thing that we think should be a constant is a good bit of ham! Whether on its own, in a salad or sandwich – it’s a staple that we all enjoy and sometimes you just can’t beat it!But do you know where it’s come from?At Swillington Organic Farm we think there’s a better option than just picking up some sliced meat from any old supermarket.Did you know most supermarket ham (including the premium ranges) is actually made from reformed, industrially processed meat?So it’s likely that the slice of traditional looking ham has come from several pigs (potentially several countries) and has been injected with a solution of water, sugars, preservatives, flavourings and other additives, or put into a giant cement-mixer-like machine to be tumbled with a similar solution.This pork mix is then put into ham-shaped moulds and cooked so it comes out looking like a whole piece of meat. A layer of fat is then stuck around the edge of the mould to make it look like it has been cut off a leg. Doesn’t sound very appetising does it?Instead you can buy it direct from the farm and even visit the pigs and the butcher that made it.Why settle for bland store bought nondescript sandwich meat, when you could roast a joint of rare breed ham at home that could feed an army of hungry children? Not to mention the delicious leftovers for use in salads, sandwiches or something a little different like these fantastic shredded gammon nachos.Not only could you eat much better quality meat by roasting, you’d save money too - being able to make it go a lot further than just a few measly sandwiches, meaning that next time you have a picnic you could really impress with delectable melt-in-the-mouth ham that won’t cost you the earth.Check out BBC Good Food for some interesting ways to cook and prepare gammon and ham.When you order your meatbox you can ask us to add an extra gammon joint in to your organic meat delivery as well as a jar of our Swillington Honey for a delicious glaze