I've cooked ham exactly once but can say everyone, including me, raved. This recipe is not from the internet, but rather from the world wide web: City Ham Recipe courtesy Alton Brown 1 city style (brined) ham, hock end 1/4 cup brown mustard 2 cups dark brown sugar 1-ounce bourbon (poured into a spritz bottle) 2 cups crushed ginger snap cookies Heat oven to 250 degrees F. Remove ham from bag, rinse and drain thoroughly. Place ham, cut side down, in a roasting pan. Using a small paring knife or clean utility knife set to the smallest blade setting, score the ham from bottom to top, spiraling clockwise as you cut. (If you're using a paring knife, be careful to only cut through the skin and first few layers of fat). Rotate the ham after each cut so that the scores are no more than 2-inches across. Once you've made it all the way around, move the knife to the other hand and repeat, spiraling counter clockwise. The aim is to create a diamond pattern all over the ham. (Don't worry too much about precision here.) Tent the ham with heavy duty foil, insert a thermometer, and cook for 3 to 4 hours or until the internal temperature at the deepest part of the meat registers 130 degrees F. Remove and use tongs to pull away the diamonds of skin and any sheets of fat that come off with them. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Dab dry with paper towels, then brush on a liberal coat of mustard, using either a basting brush or a clean paint brush (clean as in never-touched paint). Sprinkle on brown sugar, packing loosely as you go until the ham is coated. Spritz this layer lightly with bourbon, then loosely pack on as much of the crushed cookies as you can. Insert the thermometer (don't use the old hole) and return to the oven (uncovered). Cook until interior temperature reaches 140 degrees F, approximately 1 hour. Let the roast rest for 1/2 hour before carving. Here is a link that might be useful: food network link

Nearly everything I make on a regular basis ends up portioned in the freezer (bread, muffins, cake, quick breads, dinner rolls, cinnamon rolls, cornbread, scones, burger/hot dog buns...) I make casseroles and entrees in muffin tins and they get wrapped in foil and stored in the freezer. I like to use pop-up foil sheets for one/two items per foil sheet (I buy the foil sheets at Sam's Club in 2 sizes), so I can toss many things (like a couple dinner rolls or cornbread) into the toaster oven and reheat them while baking something else. We also have a "warming center" (burner) on our electric stove and I can reheat some things there (muffins, scones, wrapped in foil) covered with a glass bowl large enough to cover the item/s to keep the heat in while I make breakfast. I never use a microwave oven for reheating, but that certainly is another option. A tight wrap (plastic wrap, foil, even old-fashioned freezer paper using a butcher's wrap technique) is the best method in order to prevent ice crystals from forming. The tight wrap helps prevent the moisture inside the item from migrating through the surface. Putting things loosely in a plastic freezer bag will guarantee the items dehydrate and you'll get ice crystals forming in the bag due to the exposure to oxygen in the bag. I agree with lizbeth-gardener, removing as much air from the food is best for freezer storage. If I need to keep slices separated (sliced quick bread for instance), I'll put a piece of freezer paper between the slices. I keep a pile of the pre-cut freezer paper in sizes I often use. I like to place foil-wrapped items inside a large plastic storage container or basket so they don't get "lost" or crushed, or a zip-lock FREEZER bag will also works, but they tend to get crushed and pushed around in my freezer unless I put them on the storage space on the door. (I only have a side-by-side refrigerator-freezer.) I make a double batch of waffles or large batch of pancakes and I freeze them using this same method. I reheat them in the toaster, toaster oven, or even on the griddle. I even freeze tortillas (homemade or commercial) in portions we normally use. -Grainlady

I'd just freeze it, too. Other things that can cause milk to sour quickly: - NOT placing refrigerated milk in the coldest place in the refrigerator. The door is generally NOT the coldest place and is the one place that's exposed to warm room temperature air each time the door is opened. - Having your refrigerator warmer than 40°F to begin with will cause the milk to degrade quicker. - Taking the milk out of the refrigerator and leaving it on the counter/table for long periods of time while in use will cause it to degrade quickly. Even more damaging is doing this day after day... - Yes, the soda reduces the acidity and slows down spoilage, but so do other proper handling techniques. - Defrost the milk quickly SUBMERGED (not floating on top) in a pan of COLD water, or overnight (or longer) in the refrigerator. Never thaw it sitting at room temperature on the counter. - The liquid portion of the milk thaws quicker than the fat portion and causes some separation - a quick shake usually takes care of that, but spoiling isn't cause by the separation, so no soda needed for freezer storage as far as I can see. - If you are purchasing gallons, you may find 1/2-gallons or quarts containers work better for freezing/thawing. They won't take as long to freeze, nor as long to thaw. -Grainlady

Like Annie mentioned, you are good with either choice. Last time we made empanadas, way more than necessary, (took all day), we froze some un-baked and others baked first. Baking first is an easier re-heat or grab-n-go for travel. I almost always half-bake like pies but something like homemade ravioli i freeze fresh made. With tamales, i take some out of the steamer early for freezing since they will be steamed again later after thawing. Same with pizza night. While at it, i make extra ones to freeze and don't take those all the way to crispy like we like them...they crisp up in the re-heating.