22.6#

Yep.  22.6#

I wish I could say that is how much weight I have lost. Ha!

Nope, this is the amount of meat that is currently curing and brining in my basement in a cooler, because it won't fit in my refrigerator.  This is the amount of pork that I am praying will turn into lovely, delicious, melt-in-your-mouth ham.  This is the amount of pork that I am praying I don't mess up and that it turns out edible, so I don't have to throw it away.

Yes.  You read that right.

I am making my own ham.  And it needs to be ready for Christmas, otherwise, we're going to be eating brats  from the freezer.

Now, this isn't my first curing attempt.  I actually am very good at Canadian bacon and sausage and discovered that the last scary endeavor of bacon, wasn't that scary.  After all, a week and a half ago, I smoked up 11# of Canadian bacon and 14# of bacon, and they all turned out.  I was scared the whole time that the first attempt at bacon wasn't going to work, but it did.

The ham is scaring me, though.  That is a HUGE chunk of meat that I am messing with.

Well, taking a deep breath and carrying on.  After all, the only thing left to do is wait, turn it over in the brine, and hope, before I smoke it this next weekend.