(pictured: ready for the oven.)
So baked beans it was.
I always start with dry beans. We have a pint sized slow cooker that's just right for cooking small amounts of beans. So in went 1.5 cups of beans, 1/4 onion, 1 big carrot (in pieces) and a bay leaf. Cover with water and 4-5 hours later, it's soft beans. (OK, I did this twice cause I wanted a big batch.)
Meanwhile, sauté some chopped bacon (4-5 slices) and onion (1/2) until cooked.
Mix the cooked beans (and any remaining water) with:
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup molasses
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt
several grinds of pepper
the cooked bacon-onion melange
oodles of sliced leftover sausage
water not quite to cover
Pour into a bean pot (or two small bean pots) and bake covered at 325F for 1.5 hours. Take off the lid. If the beans are too runny, bake longer, until you have achieved the richness and thickness and flavourfulness that screams "EAT ME".
Then eat me, er, them.
2 comments:
I love baked beans but usually end up with the beans a bit crunchy. I do them in the slow cooker, or overnight soak then into the slow cooker, or soak then boil. Any of the various methods I try seem to yield somewhat crunchy beans. I was thinking of trying a pressure cooker next. Anything I might be missing, or should I just follow your method to have them turn out nicely cooked?
Cheers,
Bryan
Hi Bryan... The only advice I can give is to make sure the beans are fully cooked before you bake them. I have in the past had crunchy beans (before I got good at this!) and it was because I hadn't pre-cooked them long enough. Hope that helps. :)
Amy
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