Do you want to wow your guests with baked beans? I know what you are thinking. How in the world can one wow anyone with baked beans. Try this recipe and find out. Not only is it delicious it is healthy! Perfect for the holiday table.
Homemade Baked Beans Recipe
By Charlie Ayers, chef, owner
Calafia Café
Palo Alto, CA
www.calafiapaloalto.com
“To make this dish super easy and super cheap I turn off my oven and fire up my Crock Pot. This recipe is my absolute favorite since I love the sweetness of the honey mixed with a punch of the dried mustard. At Google I had a large vegetarian audience so I grew adept at vegetarian cooking. At Calafia I continue to make sure that we have something for everybody; and every body. For parents this is a great way to get your kids to eat their veggies and you can even expand the recipe to serve more people or to have leftovers.” – Charlie Ayers
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
1.5 lbs (3 cups) dried small white beans, or navy beans or cannellini beans
1.5 cups vegetable broth
1 cup mushroom broth
1/2 cup tamari
1/2 cup dried porcini mushrooms
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste mixed with ½ cup of vegetable stock until smoot1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup organic brown sugar
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons dried mustard
2 garlic cloves, minced
sautéed minced onion
Method (for prep in Crock Pot)
Soak navy beans overnight. I’ve soaked longer — up to 12 hours — for even softer baked beans.
Drain beans and rinse off.
Add all the ingredients.
Stir all ingredients together. Cover Crock Pot and cook 6-7 hours on high, or 10-12 hours on low. These slow cooking times are approximate, so cook until the beans are soft and the sauce is rich.
Add water to the Crock Pot, if needed.
Eyeball Warning:
If you like your eyeballs, do yourself a solid and refrain from opening the lid during the early hours of cooking. Dried mustard is volatile stuff, and the fumes will burn your pupils if you dare peep into the pot. This is a great dish to serve with Tofu Hot dogs.
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