For me, baked beans hit all the right flavor notes–sweet, savory…a bit of tang.
As a home cook, I love the long slow baking process and the wonderful aromas that waft through my kitchen when I bake beans.
I’m not alone in this romance with baked beans. Baked Beans have been enjoyed for a very long time. Europeans were making cassoulet beans as far back as the Middle Ages. Native Americans were enjoying their own version of baked beans when the European colonists arrived, baking their beans in underground “bean holes” in a sauce composed of maple syrup and bear fat.
This pot of beans is based upon Joe Yonan’s recipe for Homesteader-New England Baked Beans from his wonderful cookbook Cool Beans. (Cool Beans is available from your local bookstore or from Amazon here.)
Here is the recipe for the beans as I prepared them in my kitchen–no bear fat but a whole lot of deliciousness.
Baked Beans With Apples
Ingredients
- I pound dry white beans (I used Rancho Gordo Marcella beans)
- Water
- 2 strips (3 inch by 5 inch) of seaweed
- 3 medium yellow onions (sliced into quarters)
- 2-3 medium apples (peeled and quartered)
- 1/4 C. molasses
- 1/3 C. maple syrup
- 1/4 C. brown sugar
- 2 t. dry mustard
- 1 t. Spanish smoked sweet paprika
- 1/2 t. ground ginger
- 1/4 t. ground black pepper
- Salt to taste
- 2 T. apple cider vinegar (or to taste)
Directions
- Step 1 Soak beans covered in water overnight.
- Step 2 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Step 3 Drain beans and put then in a large pot along with the strips of seaweed. (The seaweed will help soften the beans and will be removed after the first 90 minute bake in the oven.) I used my Dutch oven. Cover with fresh water and bring to a boil. Transfer the pot of beans to the preheated oven and bake for 90 minutes. You want your beans to be tender. Bake longer in this step if you need to to get the beans tender. A lot depends upon how old your beans are.
- Step 4 Remove the bean pot from the oven. Remove the seaweed strips and discard. Reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees F. Add the onion, apples, molasses, maple syrup, brown sugar, dry mustard, paprika, ginger and black pepper to the beans. Bake for at least 8 hours. Your beans are done when they are very tender. Stir in salt to your taste and vinegar to your taste.
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