(Family Features) Follow these steps to help make the most of your holiday ham – a traditional seasonal centerpiece that can take you further than you might think!

Simplify servings: If you’re hosting a crowd for the holidays, use the guidelines below to make sure you’ll have enough ham to go around. Rule of thumb: Plan on each person eating about 1/3 to 1/2 of a pound of ham. However, if you’re planning on enjoying leftovers, you may want to consider purchasing a slightly larger ham.

• 4 people – 1.8 pounds
• 8 people – 3.6 pounds
• 12 people – 5.4 pounds
• 16 people – 7.2 pounds

Try serving your ham family or buffet-style, allowing guests to pick and choose their own slices. This helps reduce wasting food.

Save on time: Save yourself some time by purchasing a readymade ham. Some companies, such as HoneyBaked Ham, will do the hard work for you and even deliver your ham from their online catalog. Be on the lookout for specials and coupons in the weeks leading up to the holidays.

If invited as a guest, offering to bring a readymade ham is a small way to make a big impression.

Save on seasonings: Toss a few slices of ham into your greens, beans or rice for deliciously flavorful sides you can enjoy at your main holiday event and throughout the following days.

Serve all day long: Who says you have to wait until the big feast to taste your delicious ham? Consider a holiday ham breakfast, such as this Easy Hash Brown Brunch, to keep everyone satisfied ’til dinner.

Save for the future: Don’t ditch the bone. Pop it in the fridge and pull it out later to make your own ham stock, to use as the base for a recipe or sauce, from scratch. Better yet, make it easy on yourself and grab a pre-made mixed bean, white bean or split pea soup mix at your HoneyBaked Ham store to use with your ham bone.

Find more ways to get the most out of your holiday dinner centerpiece at honeybakedham.com.

Easy Hash Brown Brunch

Ingredients

• 1 package (2 pounds) frozen diced hash brown potatoes, unthawed
• 1 can (10-3/4 ounces) cream of celery or cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
• 1 cup diced HoneyBaked Ham
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 3 cups packed grated sharp cheddar cheese (about 12 ounces)
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 can (6 ounces) French fried onions, crumbled

Preparation

1. Heat oven to 350°F. In lightly greased 13-by-9-by-2-inch glass casserole dish, add hash browns.
2. Add and mix together soup, ham, thyme, cheese, sour cream and onion.
3. Bake until top is slightly golden, about 1 hour.
4. Sprinkle top with French fried onions and bake additional 10 minutes.

Sponsored by HoneyBaked Ham