Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Vermont Baked Beans

Sometimes I feel like living in rural Ohio is similar to living in a Laura Ingles Wilder book. It's not quite the prairie, but it's certainly flat. Really. And as I drive back and forth to school I travel between huge fields of farmland. I see cows and sheep and deer and corn and wheat and soybeans. And there is a huge dead zone of probably 25 miles that I have no cellphone coverage. So when I travel the 30 miles back and forth through sleet and snow and rain, I become a very careful driver. And there has been a lot of sleet and snow and rain going on here.

This cold and dreary weather combined with Legume Wednesday, makes it the perfect time for baked beans. With salt pork. Yeah, salt pork is available in rural Ohio. Salt pork is actually a deliciously chewy addition to baked beans. The maple syrup is a nice tasty addition to the beans too. And the house felt all cozy and smelled so great as these beans cooked all morning. They really made such a cold and dreary snow soaked day much much better. And the urge to put twin braids in my hair passed nicely.
Vermont Baked Beans
from Cooking Light

1 pound dried navy beans (about 2 cups)
1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion
1/2 cup diced salt pork (about 4 ounces)
5 1/2 cups water
3/4 cup maple syrup, divided
1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)

1. Sort and wash beans; place in a large bowl. Cover with water to 2 inches above beans; cover and let stand 8 hours or overnight. Drain beans.
2. Preheat oven to 325°.
3. Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion and pork to pan; saute 5 minutes. Add beans, 5 1/2 cups water, 1/2 cup syrup, mustard, salt, and pepper sauce; bring to a boil. Cover and bake at 325° for 2 1/2 hours or until beans are tender, stirring occasionally. Uncover and bake an additional 30 minutes or until mixture begins to thicken. Stir in remaining 1/4 cup syrup.

9 comments:

glamah16 said...

You knwo I had baked beans for lunch today and thought to myself why dont I make them more often. Perfect food for weather like thsi. Although your party beans sound even tastier!

Megan said...

My mom use to make beans that look like these beans. So tasty!
We never get snow here where I live (we use to sometimes) but with that being said, I'm hoping to make a liar out of me this year. LOL :)

Amanda said...

Oh, those look good. Really, really good. Sorry you're having such horrid weather--we're due for a storm starting sometime tonight (or so the weatherman says).

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

Unfortunately my mom served us beans from a can all my growing years so a nice pot of homemade beans would go over bery nicely in this family!!

Anonymous said...

Reason 255 why you need to move to MN - we are the official resting place of Laura Ignalls Wilder! And remember, we could hang out ALL THE TIME.

Anonymous said...

If you post a photo to your facebook wearing braids, I will too. My mother used to call me Pippi.

Deborah said...

I would be scared driving through bad weather without cell phone reception!! But these beans look and sound delicious!

Cakelaw said...

LOL - I grew up watching Little House on the Prairie, and can still see Laura runnng through the open fields at the end of the show. I have never made my own baked beans, but they sound very good. Beans get a bad rap here for some reason, but I love 'em (even though mine are only the Heinz tinned version).

Zylo said...

These look so good and I've wanted to try salt pork. If I can find it, I'll have to try this. It'll be a nice departure from BBQ beans here in the South.