In this season of everything pumpkin and maple, what better treat than Maple Baked Beans? Maple syrup is, after all, good in just about everything and the contrast of sweet and savory flavors in baked beans never gets old.
If you’ve been wondering about the origins of maple syrup as a food, it turns out that people have been eating maple syrup for a very long time. Historians tell us that the indigenous people of the northeastern sections of North America were enjoying the delights of maple syrup long before the Europeans arrived.
Today, maple syrup is a prized (and lucrative) product for producers in the Northeastern United States and in Canada, with Canada producing about 80% of the world’s output. In 2018, global sales of maple syrup topped $380 million dollars. That’s a whole lot of maple syrup!
Really good maple syrup can be pricey, though.
Part of the reason for the syrup’s high cost is the cost and difficulty of processing the sugary maple sap. The sap has to be boiled down to reduce the water content and to concentrate the sugars. The quantity of sap required is huge, too. It takes 10 gallons of sap to make one quart of maple syrup.
There is an additional reason for the high price you pay for maple syrup: The supply of 77% of the world’s maple syrup is controlled by a Canadian cartel.
You read that right. A cartel.
It’s the Federation of Quebec Maple Syrup Producers to be exact. Bloomberg News has called the organization “the OPEC of the maple syrup world.”
Apparently, things aren’t all sweetness and light in the maple sugar business either. It’s a cutthroat industry and there is a good deal of drama.
Case in point: In 2012, the Federation’s “strategic reserve” of maple syrup was hit by daring thieves who made off with about 250,000 gallons of syrup worth approximately $22 million. Newspapers called it “The Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist.” (Most of the syrup was recovered and some of the thieves were subsequently arrested and charged with “trafficking in stolen maple syrup.”)
Netflix did a documentary on the theft titled “Dirty Money.” Personally, I would have thought the Coen Brothers would have picked up the story by now. It is a story crying for a parody. Working title: “Sticky Fingers.”
This recipe for Maple Baked Beans is terrific. It is a perfect blend of maple syrup’s sweet notes with savory ingredients like grated onion, Dijon mustard and a hint of cayenne. Although it can be made with canned beans, make it with your best dried beans. It’s worthy of special treatment. My good friend Sarah gave me a bag of beautiful heirloom calypso beans from the Chili Smith Company and they served as a perfect base for this dish. Rancho Gordo beans would, of course, be great beans to use here, too.
Here’s the recipe.
Maple Baked Beans
Ingredients
- 1/2 small onion (grated--I used a red onion)
- 1/2 C. maple syrup
- 2 T. granulated sugar
- 2 T. molasses
- 2 T. Dijon mustard
- 2 T. tomato paste
- 1 garlic clove (minced)
- Pinch (or two or three!) of cayenne pepper
- Salt to taste
- Black pepper to taste
- 6 C. cooked white beans (or 3 19 oz. cans-rinsed and drained)
Directions
- Step 1 Prepare dried beans if using. I used dried (and soaked) calypso beans cooked in my Instant Pot. Or, drain and rinse canned beans.
- Step 2 Mix onion, maple syrup, sugar, molasses, mustard, tomato paste, garlic, cayenne, salt and black pepper in a large Dutch oven.
- Step 3 Add the beans to the sauce you’ve made and stir to mix thoroughly. Pour boiling water over the beans and the sauce. You want enough water to cover the beans.
- Step 4 Bring the mixture to a simmer on your stove over medium heat for a few minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Step 5 Cover the Dutch oven with its lid and put your beans into a 300 degree F. oven. Bake the beans for 4 to 5 hours. Check and stir the beans occasionally to be sure there is enough liquid in the pan. Add more water if necessary..
This recipe is adapted from one that appears in the cookbook Spilling The Beans available here.
