Boston Baked Beans

Boston Baked Beans are a staple in my house ... they have been since I was a kid right through married life. There is something about baked beans that is not only comforting but also very filling, and can compliment more dishes that you can shake a stick at. Think about it beans go with everything you BBQ on the grill ... as well as our personal favorite blackened seafood.

My husband and I were talking just recently about summertime food and baked beans came up, and in his usual fashion asked if I could make some home-made beans. I had always tried home-made beans when someone else made them ... but they were always watery and runny, they missed that thick pasty consistency that you can get out of a can (I cannot believe I just mentioned "a can"). That is what I craved out of a home-made version but had no idea how to make them.

I started to search the Internet (which is what I usually do when I am given a challenge) ... and found many, many, many Boston Baked Beans recipes, some stove-top, some oven, and some crock-pot. Crock-pot was the cooking method I wanted to use, especially in the summertime since it does not give off as much heat as the oven or stove-top.

This is what I did ...

Ingredients
1 bag of dried navy beans
5 small slices of salt pork
1 onion, finely diced
4 tablespoons molasses
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar

Soak beans overnight in cold water. Simmer the beans in the same water until tender, approximately 1 to 2 hours. Drain and reserve the liquid.

Arrange the beans in the crock-pot by placing a portion of the beans in the bottom of dish, and layering them with salt pork and onion.

In a saucepan, combine molasses, pepper, dry mustard, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil and pour over beans. Pour in just enough of the reserved bean water to cover the beans. Simmer on Low for 6-8 hours, until beans are tender.

If you find it is to salty, add more brown sugar one tablespoon at a time, till you reach the right flavor.

YUM!!!

The nice thing about beans is that they keep very well in the in fridge, in "Tupperware" or some kind. Like most things that are made in the crock-pot these beans will only get better and better ever day they sit and gather more flavor.

I wonder what we will eat with beans tomorrow???