Baked Beans

This bean recipe is almost the way my mother told me to make them. She would have used a piece of salt pork instead of the bacon and definitely no V-8. Like most of the recipes I use, this is not written in stone, my recipes are are only a waypoint to where I am trying to get to. If you like them sweeter by all means use more sugar or molasses, more bacon, throw it in, as long as the beans are cooked and reduce to make their own sauce it is all good.

Just one point, do not over salt at the start. The bacon may be salty, the tomatoes may have salt, once the liquid starts to reduce, the flavors will intensify. And do not add the sugars early.

Baked Beans

1 lb dry beans (pea beans or yellow eye beans)

1 small onion, peeled

1 tsp salt

1/2 lb of bacon ( 10 to 12 strips)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup molasses

1 tbsp dry mustard (dijon will work if you would rather)

1 can tomatoes 28

12 oz V-8 juice (or tomato juice)

Directions

Rinse the beans

Put in a pot with the whole onion and salt.

Dice half the bacon (leave the rest in strips) and add to the beans

Cover with water. Make sure there is 2 or 3 inches over the top of the beans

Put on the stove at a medium high heat.

Cook until beans have softened, add water if necessary. 1 to 2 hours. DO NOT ADD THE SUGAR UNTIL THE BEANS ARE SOFT.

Mix the brown sugar, molasses, mustard and tomatoes (if you are using whole tomatoes crush them by hand.

In a baking dish, (roast pan, dutch oven, bean crock) mix the beans and the tomato mixture. Keep the onion in the baking dish. Take the remainining bacon strips and roll them up, place them on top of the beans. Before covering the dish, make sure the beans are covered with liquid.

Cover and bake for 1 hour at 350.

Check to see if the beans are still covered in liquid, if they are drying out add some of the V-8 juice until covered. Check again in 30 minutes, add move liquid if necessay.

Continue baking until most of the excess liquid is evaporated.

Take out and let set covered. Serve immediately or let cool and reheat and serve the next day.