Boston-style Baked Beans

Total Time: 6 hrs 30 mins Preparation Time: 1 hr 30 mins Cook Time: 5 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 2 cups dried beans (pea, navy or soldier)
• 1/2 lb smoked thick slab bacon, with rind on it
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup blackstrap molasses
• 1 tablespoon mustard powder
• 2 bay leaves
• salt and pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper or 1/8 teaspoon hot sauce

Recipe

• 1 in a saucepan, cover beans with cold water, bring to a boil; boil 1 minute.
• 2 remove from heat, cover pot, and let sit for 1 hour; drain well.
• 3 score the bacon in squares without cutting through the rind.
• 4 put half the beans in the pot in which you will bake them, and add the onion, molasses and seasonings.
• 5 add remaining beans and bury the bacon rind up in the top layer of beans add just enough water to cover.
• 6 cover the pot tightly; bake for 4-6 hours, or more to melt the lamb fat, and blend the flavors.
• 7 add boiling water from time to time if needed.
• 8 the last 30 minutes of baking, remove the lid to make a brown crust.