Cup O'Joe Baked Beans

I have to say hats off to people like Bush's, Heinz, Van Camp, etc - not because of their beans, but because they can get an appetizing photo of said beans.  Ok, they have a professional staff for things like this but I was really struggling to get something decent.  Don't let this dissuade you from trying these beans as they are so easy to make and pack a wallop of flavor in each mouthful.

It has been a few years since I last made baked beans.  I remember that I wasn't thrilled with the results last time, and was determined this time to get the flavor I wanted in the beans.  I searched for a few days for the perfect recipe before I decided that it did not exist, well not for me anyway.  Instead I chose to take the flavor profiles I liked from three recipes and reinvent the beans to suit my family's tastes.  I did have a couple of considerations - I wanted the beans to be vegetarian, I wanted to use my slow cooker, and I wanted a sweet BBQ flavor.  The three recipes I chose were Vegetarian Baked Beans (Squawkfox), Crockpot Vegetarian Baked Beans (Blade & Cauldron),  and Barbecued Beans (Slow Cooker Revolution via Cooking Light), and then I went to work choosing what I liked from each recipe.

I decided to soak my beans over night even though I was using the slow cooker.  Remember to sort through them to pull out any rocks or clumps of dirt that may be hiding, and give them a good rinse.  I covered them with water and then left them until the next morning.  Apparently you don't have to soak the beans if you are using a slow cooker but I didn't want to take any chances of them not being ready in time, and it really isn't that much work to soak them. 

A few recipes I found mentioned adding barbecue sauce, but I really wanted to add my own ingredients to achieve the flavor of a sweet barbecue sauce.  I went with molasses, honey, tomato paste, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, ketchup and a good dose of my favorite Coffee's of Hawaii coffee that had been brewed fresh that morning.  Two of my daughters are vegetarians so I did not want to add bacon, and I found that adding the coffee provided that roasted flavor.  Honestly I did not miss the bacon because the ingredients I added managed to be sweet and smokey by themselves.  Don't get me wrong, I love bacon as much as the next non-vegetarian so add it if you would like too, I just didn't want anyone to wonder if these would still be good without the smokey flavor that bacon can impart to a dish.

Once they had finished cooking and I was happy with the texture of the beans I found that they were still a little "soupy".  Some people prefer their beans to have a bit of liquid, but I added a corn starch mixture to thicken them up a little.  For those making these beans the day before don't add too much corn starch because they will thicken overnight.  We had some leftovers the next day and I will definitely make them a day or so before next time. The flavors really developed overnight and they tasted amazing after being gently reheated.

Cup O'Joe Baked Beans

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Ingredients

• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2½ cups dried navy beans, picked over and soaked overnight 
• 3 cups vegetable stock
• 1 cup strongly brewed coffee
• ¼ cup molasses
• ¼ cup honey
• ½ cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1 6oz tin tomato paste
• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup ketchup
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons corn starch dissolved in water, if required

Preparation

1. Heat oil in pan.
2. Add onion and cook for two minutes, add garlic and continue cooking until both are soft and golden.
3. Drain pre-soaked beans and add to the slow cooker insert.
4. Add cooked onion and garlic to slow cooker insert.
5. In a separate bowl whisk together the vegetable stock, coffee, molasses, honey, dark brown sugar, tomato paste, apple cider vinegar, and ketchup - add to slow cooker insert and stir to combine.
6. Set slow cooker to high and cook for approximately 6 hours.
7. Add salt and pepper to taste.
8. If there is too much liquid in your bean mixture dissolve 2 tablespoons corn starch in water.  Add to bean mixture and stir until thickened.

Recipe by All That's Left Are The Crumbs©

To Try Tuesday - Roasted Garlic Bean Dip

Tuesday has rolled around again so quickly and it is officially To Try Tuesday.  Lucky for me I just discovered a new blog ¡Comida es mi vida y mi vida es comida! by Hester.  Her blog is filled with all sort of goodies but the one that immediately caught my eye was the Garlic Bean Dip.  Who wouldn't love a recipe that can be easily made and is good for you too?  It immediately went to the top of my To Try list.

Lucky for me I had most of the ingredients already in my cupboard and fridge.  I only had to pick up some fresh parsley this morning and I was ready to go.  This is the kind of dip that you could whip up at a moments notice and be eating in a few hours.

I decided that I wanted to roast the garlic before adding it to the other ingredients.  I love how roasting brings out the sweetness of the garlic and it is so easy to do.  All you have to do is take off some of the outer skin and cut a small portion off the top to expose the cloves.  Put the head of garlic in a small oven-proof container and pour a little olive oil over the top.  Place the container in an oven preheated to 400F and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until it is golden and soft.  Wait for it to be cool enough to handle and then just squeeze the cloves out as needed.

Roasted Garlic Bean Dip
(adapted from a recipe by Hester Chang)

Ingredients 

• 1 (15-ounce) can of cannellini beans/white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (20-ounce) can of red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 4 tablespoons of plain Greek yogurt
• juice of one lemon
• zest from half a lemon
• 5 to 6 garlic roasted garlic cloves
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large handful of parsley
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Preparation

1. Place all the ingredients into a blender or a food processor and whirl them all together until a smooth consistency is achieved.
2. Taste the dip and if need be, add some more salt/pepper/lemon juice/yogurt.  Blend it again.
3. Put it in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for a good two hours to let the flavors meld. 
4. Serve with your favorite ingredients used for dipping such as crackers, pretzels, pita chips, carrots, celery, etc.

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