Big Sur Bakery's Baked Beans
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Ingredients
  • 1 pound dried red, navy, or cranberry beans
  • 1 small onion, halved
  • 1 small carrot
  • 1 small celery stalk
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 quart chicken stock
  • 3 ounces bacon, diced (3-4 slices)
  • 3 tbsp whole-grain mustard
  • 3 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 tsp ground coffee
  • 1 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
Instructions
  1. Place the beans in a large bowl, cover with water and soak at room temperature overnight. Drain the beans and place them in a medium pot with the onion, carrot, celery, bay leaf, garlic, stock, and bacon. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the beans are tender, but not mushy, about 30-45 minutes (they will cook further in the oven). Skim off any foam that forms.
  2. Strain the beans, reserving the cooking liquid. Discard the onion, carrot, celery, and bay leaf; set the beans aside.
  3. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  4. In a small bowl, combine the mustard, brown sugar, ground coffee, ground pepper, salt, and reserved cooking liquid. Combine the beans and the sauce in a baking dish, cover with aluminum foil, and bake for 1-1/2 to 2 hours, or until the beans have absorbed most of the liquid. Remove from the oven, and stir in the herbs.
Notes
I didn't have fresh herbs on hand so I used dried, as listed above. The original recipe calls for: 2 tbsp flat-leaf parsley; 1 tbsp oregano; 1 tbsp thyme.
The original recipe calls for "freshly ground coffee." I used Folgers and it was fine. Folgers also makes a nice cup of coffee when used in a French press. I live in Seattle. I know coffee. Trust me.
Recipe by Sprung At Last at https://sprungatlast.com/2014/09/big-sur-bakerys-baked-beans/