ONLINE EXTRA — THE MANY SIDES OF BEANS: Kenyan Mashed Corn and Beans . . . Picnic Beans . . . Mixed Baked Beans, etc.

Kenyan Mashed Corn and Beans

2 cups dried beans or peas

4 large potatoes, peeled, quartered

2 semiripe plantains, peeled, each cut into 6 pieces

2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels

1½ cups lentils

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

½ stick (¼ cup) butter, room temperature

Chopped parsley

Soak the beans or peas in enough cold water to cover in a large bowl 2-8 hours. Drain; rinse well under cold water. Place in a Dutch oven; add water just to cover. Heat to a boil; reduce heat to low. Simmer 20 minutes.

Add potatoes, plantains, corn, lentils, salt, pepper and more water, if necessary. Heat to a boil over high heat; reduce heat to low. Simmer until the vegetables are soft, 35 minutes. Drain off excess water, if necessary. Combine the vegetables and butter in a large bowl; mash until smooth. Sprinkle with parsley.

Yield: Serves 15.

Approximate nutritional analysis per serving: 259 calories, 19 percent of calories from fat, 6 grams fat, 2 grams saturated fat, 8 milligrams cholesterol, 44 grams carbohydrates, 12 grams protein, 167 milligrams sodium, 8 grams fiber.

Picnic Beans

2 slices (1 ounce each) Canadian bacon, chopped

2/3 cup chopped onion

1 16-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 16-ounce can light red beans, rinsed and drained

1 16-ounce can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

1 16-ounce can Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained

2 8-ounce cans no-salt-added tomato sauce

¼ cup cider vinegar

3 tablespoons molasses

¼ cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon chili powder

Place Canadian bacon and onion in a nonstick skillet. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until onions are tender and edges of bacon are lightly browned.

Place beans in mixing bowl. Add Canadian bacon-onion mixture. Combine remaining in-gredients and pour over beans; stir to blend. Spoon into 2-quart baking dish.

Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees, 45 to 60 minutes.

Yield: Serves 12.

Approximate nutritional analysis per serving: 185 calories (5 percent from fat), 1 gram fat (trace saturated), 2 milligrams cholesterol, 34 grams carbohydrates, 10 grams protein, 322 milligrams sodium, 8 grams dietary fiber.

Mixed Baked Beans

1½ cups dried pinto beans

1½ cups dried kidney beans

1½ cups dry great Northern beans

14 cups water

½ pound salt pork, cut into 1/8-inch strips

1 large onion, chopped

1½ cups ketchup

1½ cups brown sugar, packed

3 cups water

3 teaspoons dry mustard

3 tablespoons molasses

1½ teaspoon salt

½ pound bacon, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

Pick over and wash dried beans. Rinse well, drain. Combine beans and water in a large Dutch oven or cast-iron pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat, cover and let sit 1 hour. Drain and return beans to Dutch oven.

Stir in remaining ingredients, leaving salt pork near top. Cover and bake at 300 degrees for three hours. Uncover, and bake an additional 30 minutes or until beans are tender.

Home-Canned Boston Baked Beans

1 quart dried navy beans (about 2 pounds)

2 teaspoons salt (for soaking beans)

½ pound lean salt pork, cut into 1-inch cubes

3 onions, sliced

2/3 cup brown sugar, packed

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons dry mustard

2/3 cup molasses

Cover beans with 3 quarts cold water and soak 12 to 18 hours in refrigerator or other cool place. Add 2 teaspoons salt to the soaking water. Bring to a boil. Cover the pot and simmer over low heat until skins begin to crack. Drain, saving the liquid.

Put the beans into a crockpot or bean pot. Add pork and onions. Mix remaining ingredients together and stir into pot along with 4 cups of the liquid that the beans were cooked in. If you don’t have enough liquid, add water to make 4 cups. Pour over the beans.

Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 3½ hours. Add water, if needed, as the beans cook, to keep the beans soupy.

Pack into hot canning jars leaving 1-inch of head space. Process pints 1 hour and 20 min-utes, quarts 1 hour 35 minutes, at 10 pounds pressure (you might have to adjust for altitude).

Yield: 6 pints.

Note: This recipe can be doubled or tripled.

Baked Beans Casserole

3 large cans Bush’s Original Baked Beans

1 package of hot dogs

1 package of kielbasa

6 slices bacon

1 small onion, diced

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Pour beans into a Dutch oven.

Slice hot dogs, kielbasa and bacon into bite-sized pieces and dice onion. Add everything to beans and mix.

Cover and bake for 45 minutes.

Uncover, mix, and bake an additional 15 minutes or until onions are tender.

Taste and adjust seasonings. Season with salt, pepper, ketchup, garlic or onion powder, as desired.

Southern Baked Beans

1 pound ground beef

2 cans pork and beans

1 cup barbecue sauce

¾ cup brown sugar (or more according to taste)

1 small onion, finely chopped

Brown ground beef and drain. Pour remaining ingredients into a large pot and let simmer for 30 minutes or until onion is somewhat tender.

Barbecue Baked Beans

32 ounces pork and beans

½ cup light brown sugar

2 tablespoons mustard

½ cup catsup

¼ cup barbecue sauce

1 tablespoon liquid Barbecue Smoke, optional

1 large onion, diced

1 small bell pepper, diced, optional

3 tablespoons molasses, optional

4 bacon slices, fried and broken up

Mix all ingredients together. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or cook in crockpot on high for 4 to 5 hours.

Yield: Serves 6.

New England Crockpot Baked Beans

1 pound dry navy beans

Wash and pick over beans, removing any stones, broken beans, etc.

In a saucepan, cover beans with water (about 1 inch above top of beans). Simmer beans for 10 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes.

Transfer to crockpot, along with water they were cooked in. Cover and leave to soak over-night.

The next day add:

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1 additional cup water (if beans are dry)

4 teaspoons dry mustard

4 tablespoons molasses

2 tablespoons ketchup (optional)

1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)

1 large onion, sliced

Onion powder, to taste (optional)

¼ to ½ pound salt pork

Mix ingredients (except for salt pork) and stir into beans. Slash salt pork in ½- inch slices nearly up to the rind, but not all the way through. Cut across the previous slices until the salt pork is deeply scored. Submerge salt pork in beans. A slice of hickory smoked bacon can be placed over the top of the beans.

Turn crockpot on low setting. Cover and cook for 6 hours, or until beans are tender. If beans start to become dry during cooking, add a small amount of hot water.

When beans are tender, taste and adjust seasonings before serving. Slice up bits of the pork to add to each serving.

Hunting Camp Baked Beans

1 pound white beans

1 quart cold water

1 medium onion sliced

½ teaspoon prepared mustard

3 teaspoons cider vinegar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

¾ cup molasses

1 cup ketchup

Pinch of black pepper

½ pound of bacon

3 tablespoons of your favorite barbecue sauce

Rinse beans and soak overnight in cold water. Cook in soaking water. Cook beans covered in pot in 1 quart water. Cover, heat to boil and then simmer for 30 minutes.

Drain, keeping the liquid aside. Mix beans and rest of ingredients in 6-quart casserole dish, Dutch oven or roaster.

Add 3 cups of reserved cooking water. Cover and bake for 4 hours in 250-degree oven.

Remove and add more water if needed at this time. Remove 1 cup of beans from pot and mash and add back to pot and stir.

Place back in oven for another 2 hours at 250 degrees.

Baked Beans Vegetarian-Style

1 pound navy or kidney beans

6 cups water

1/3 cup molasses

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1½ teaspoons salt

½ teaspoon dry mustard

½ cup butter

Precook beans in boiling water for 2 minutes. Cover and let stand 1 hour. Then simmer for 1 hour until tender. Drain, reserving liquid. Place beans in crock pot.

Mix 1 cup reserved liquid, brown sugar, molasses, salt and mustard. Pour over beans and dot with butter. Cover and cook for 6 to 12 hours on low setting.

Three-Bean Baked Beans

5 bacon slices

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

1 tablespoon dry mustard

1½ teaspoons dried thyme

¾ cup ketchup

½ cup apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup dark molasses

1/3 cup (or more) water

1 bay leaf

1 15- to 16-ounce can red kidney beans, rinsed, drained

1 15- to 16-ounce can black beans, rinsed, drained

1 15-ounce can cannellini (white kidney beans), rinsed, drained

1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook bacon in heavy large ovenproof pot over medium heat until crisp. Using tongs, transfer to paper towels to drain. Crumble bacon and reserve.

Add onion to drippings in pot and sauté until almost tender, about 5 minutes.

Add dry mustard and thyme and stir 1 minute. Mix in ketchup, vinegar, molasses, 1/3 cup water, bay leaf and all beans. Season with salt and pepper.

Cover pot and bake bean mixture 45 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding more water if mixture seems dry. Mix bacon into beans. Bake 15 minutes longer. Discard bay leaf. Mix in hot pepper sauce and serve.

Yield: Serves 4 to 6.

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