Mmmmmm Baked Beans!

Alright,

So it's still picnic and cookout season.  When the question is raised: "What do I bring?", someone inevitably says: "Why not baked beans?"  The problem with this is that you need a good recipe.  Sometimes it's too sweet, sometimes too salty and there is almost always never enough bacon in them.  Well, my friends, I am proud to announce that I have concocted a recipe that I deem utterly appropriate for all cookout occasions.  With a little help from a recipe I found on epicurious.com, these may be the best baked beans I have ever tasted.

Here it goes:

8 slices thick cut bacon

1 large onion- chopped coarsly

1 T spicy brown mustard

1 T minced garlic

1 1/2 tsp dried Thyme

3/4 cup Ketchup

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

fill a 1/3 measuring cup half with a dark, robust molasses and the other half with honey

1 T brown sugar

1/3 cup water

2 small bay leaves

1 can red kidney beans

1 can cannellini beans

1 can black beans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Alright, you are going to start by cooking your bacon until crisp then setting aside to drain.  Crumble bacon.  Remove some of the drippings from the pan and then add the onions.  Cook these until soft and somewhat losing their color.  Add the mustard, garlic and the thyme and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.  Then add the next 6 ingredients and stir for 1 minute.  Add the beans and bacon, mix well and transfer to a baking pan.

Bake this for about 45 minutes uncovered stirring once halfway through.  If the beans look like they are getting dry, add water by the Tablespoon.  (I didn't have to).

 

This recipe is fairly easy and fast to make!  That is what I loved about it.  It's tangy from the apple cider vinegar; but not too sweet from the sugar (because I didn't add a ton).

Let me know how yours turns out if you make this!  Hopefully you enjoy it!

Let us talk basic kneeds!

New things to come this summer/ Mango Bean Salsa

So guys,

I have been crazy busy this summer.  I thought to myself, oh I will get some time off.  I'll cook, bake and blog; but no!  I have been just as busy.  Camps and work and weddings everywhere!  I am also deeply considering selling my strawberry preserves over the internet.  Let me know if that would interest any of you followers out there!  Anyway, that's no excuse you say.  To that I say you're right!  So, a preview of things to come:

I am going to be:

baking breads

making pies

experimenting with salads/salsas

showing you the best baked beans you ever would taste

much much more!

Most of that is not happening today because I don't have it all prepared.  I did, however, need to get on here and make sure you knew I was still alive and to share one quick fresh recipe.  Another thing to note is that I have been eating a lot of sandwiches lately.  Oh my I dig a good sandwich.  

Anyway, I made a salsa with my dear friend Elizabeth last night.  We were just messing around and here is what we came up with:

Mango and bean Salsa

6-8 ripe tomatoes roughly chopped

2 medium onions chopped

two mangos diced 

3 cans of beans (your choice but we used black)

2 T (or more) minced garlic

2 small limes, juiced

1 medium bunch of fresh cilantro finely chopped

salt and pepper to taste

You are just going to literally mix this all together in a big bowl.  No special order, no nothing!  Nice, right?

This makes a TON of salsa and it's really darn tasty and easy.

Eat this with corn chips mmmmmmmmmmm.  It's a nice summer side dish.  Let me know how yours turns out.

Let us talk basic kneeds!