Boston Baked Beans

Total Time: 10 hrs Preparation Time: 2 hrs Cook Time: 8 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 12
• 1 quart dried pea beans, picked over
• 3/4 lb bacon or 3/4 lb salt lamb
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 3 tablespoons sugar (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard (coleman's preferred)
• 1/3 cup molasses
• 1 cup water, boiling

Recipe

• 1 soak beans overnight in water.
• 2 in the morning, drain and cover with 2 quarts of fresh water.
• 3 heat to simmering point and cook slowly for 1 1/2 hour or until skins burst readily when a bean is removed from the pan and blown upon.
• 4 drain.
• 5 cut off one slice of lamb and score through the rind in squares.
• 6 place the slice of lamb in the bottom of the bean pot, add the par-boiled beans and bury the other piece of lamb in the top portion of the beans, having only the scored rind exposed.
• 7 mix the salt, sugar, mustard, molasses and boiling water; pour over the beans, adding enough additional boiling water to cover.
• 8 cover the pot and bake at 250f for 6 to 8 hours, adding additional boiling water as needed.
• 9 uncover during the last half hour of baking to brown the top.
• 10 variations: maine and cape cod baked beans; place a peeled onion in the bottom of the bean pot. new hampshire and vermont baked beans; use maple syrup or maple sugar in place of the molasses. connecticut and new york baked beans; add onion and tomato ketchup or chili sauce.