Thursday Recipe - Boston Baked Beans

This is a great recipe. It takes 2-3 days to prepare, so be warned. But also note that much of that time is cooking time in the crockpot or sitting time in the fridge. Actual time you need to do anything is really not much. But if you are planning on making these for that bbq tonight, you don't have enough time. This is one you have plan ahead for, but it is worth the wait.

These are similar to the canned pork'n'beans, but so much better. It's based off an old Betty Crocker recipe.

Boston Baked Beans

2 c. dried navy beans (small white beans)
1/2 c. chopped onion
3 strips bacon, cooked until crisp, then cooled and crumbled
2 T. brown sugar
1/3 c. pancake syrup
1 t. salt
1 t. dry mustard powder (NOT prepared mustard like you'd put on a hot dog)
1/4 t. black pepper

2 nights before you want to eat them - Put the beans in a large bowl. Rinse well with cold water. Cover with fresh cold water. Set aside to soak.

The next morning - Drain the beans. Place in a 2-3 quart sauce pan. Cover with warm water. Simmer over med-low heat for 2-3 hours until beans are mostly soft. Add more water as needed to keep the beans covered.

Drain beans, SAVE THE LIQUID. Put the beans in a 2-quart crockpot. Add the onion, bacon crumbles, sugar, syrup, salt, mustard powder, and pepper. Add just enough of the bean liquid to cover the beans in the crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Cool the beans for 30 minutes or so, then refrigerate overnight. I usually just pull the ceramic liner from my crockpot and refrigerate it in that.

At least three hours before serving - Heat the beans in the crockpot on low for 2-3 hours until hot through and very soft. Keep warm until ready to serve.

Thursday Recipe - Layered Bean Dip

From scratch! Yep, you read that right. Refried beans and guacamole and everything except the cheese and sour cream from scratch. It isn't as hard as you might think.

Layered Bean Dip

3 c. refried beans (recipe follows)
1 small can chopped green chilies (or make your own)
1 c. shredded cheese, cheddar or jack preferred
1 c. sour cream
1 c. salsa (how about this recipe)
1/2 c. mini bell peppers, chopped
1/2 c. chopped olives

Layer everything in the order given. Serve with plenty of tortilla chips.

If you want a hot dip, layer the first three ingredients, then bake at 400° for 10-15 minutes until the cheese is melted. Remove from the oven and add the rest of the ingredients. Serve immediately.

Refried Beans (not really fried but smashed until it resembles the canned stuff)

2 c. dried pinto beans
plenty of water
1 T. salt
1 t. garlic powder

Rinse the beans in cold water. Place in a saucepan and add 4 c. very hot water. Bring to a boil. Turn off the heat, cover the pot, and let the beans soak for an hour.

Drain the beans. Add 4 c. of fresh hot water. Cover and simmer for 3-4 hours until the beans are soft. The water should be mostly gone by this point. If the beans get too dry while cooking, add more water 1/2 c. at a time. You want just enough to cover the beans.

This is the tricky part. You don't want a lot of liquid when you smash the beans up, but you want to save the cooking liquid from the beans in case your beans are too dry when smashing. You want a gloppy consistency but not a runny one. Make sense? Good, I'm confused now, too.

Smash the beans with a potato masher until they're the consistency that you want for refried beans. Some people like them chunkier. That's just fine. If they get too dry while you're smashing add in some of the saved bean cooking liquid.

Once you have the beans as smooth as you want them, stir in the salt and garlic powder. Taste and add more if you want. Some people like cumin in the refried beans, but I usually pass on it.

Store in the refrigerator for up to three weeks. Makes a nice big pile of beans - about 5 cups.