Braised Red Snapper with Black Olives and Lupini Beans

When Matt was in Rota, Spain, he not only picked up an arsenal of wine and port, but also some quite interesting foods such as Spanish blood sausage, a type of sheeps milk cheese, cans of olives and "tomate frito" and an interesting package of "saladitos" which I found out they were acutally brined lupini beans. I have never heard of or seen lupini beans. They look like flat butterbeans and taste somewhat between garbanzo and lima beans. The odd thing about these legumes is that no matter how long you cook them for, they will always be slightly al dente. I guess they are highly toxic when dried and you have to cook them for hours and hours and change the water, etc. So the Spanish (and I think Italians, too) found a way to brine these beans and they are simply served as snack food at most bars in Spain. They have an outer shell you have to peel before you pop them in your mouth. The brined lupinis we had were rather salty but they go great with beer--so I was told. Anyway, long story short, Matt and I couldn't possibly eat all of the beans so I came up with this dish using the beans (this recipe is very similar to my Tilapia with Tomato and Chickpeas but without all the spices).

INGREDIENTS (serves 2)

• About a 1.5 pounds of red snapper
• Coarse salt and fresh ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon Spanish olive oil
• 1/3 cup dry white wine
• 8oz. "tomate frito" or El Pato tomato sauce
• Handful of black olives, sliced
• 1/4 cup of brined lupini beans, outer shells removed and soaked in warm water for a few minutes to remove excess salt

DIRECTIONS

Wash the red snapper in cold water and pat dry. Sprinkle some salt and pepper. Set aside.

In a large skillet with 2" sides, heat the butter and olive oil over medium-high heat. When hot, add the snapper and quickly sear until you're able to flip the fish over (about 90 seconds). Add the wine and raise the heat and bring to a boil. Add the tomato sauce, olives and lupini beans. Lower heat and simmer for 7 to 10 minutes more. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper, if needed. Serve with steamed white rice and a good, dry Spanish wine.

Red Beans and Rice and Cornbread Pudding

For some reason, I'm getting some weird cravings, and I was craving red beans and rice the other day. When I was in boarding school in Florida we used to have black beans and rice or red beans and rice A LOT! It was probably a cheap way to feed hungry students.

I got this recipe from "Down Home With the Neely's" which is a semi-new cooking show on Food Network. I'm still not sure if I like it, only because the couple (the Neely's) are so freakin' lovey-dovey...Oh, and if you're a bread pudding aficionado, I think you'll like this cornbread recipe. Bon appetit!

INGREDIENTS (serves 4 to 6)

Red Beans

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 pound smoked sausage, cut into 1/4-inch slices (I used Kielbasa)
• 1 tablespoon your favorite dry rub or seasoning salt
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 (12-ounce) cans red beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 2 bay leaves

Rice

• 4 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups long-grain rice
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• Pinch salt

DIRECTIONS

In a large skillet heat the vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Saute the onion, celery, green bell pepper, and garlic until tender. Add the smoked sausage, dry rub, thyme, salt and pepper. Saute for about 5 minutes then add the red beans, chicken stock and bay leaves. Let simmer uncovered on low for 1 1/2 hours. Stirring occasionally and adding water, if necessary.

While the beans are cooking add all the ingredients for the rice to a small saucepan over medium heat. Cover and let cook for 15 minutes. Once the rice is cooked, let stand for 5 minutes. Serve with the red beans.

Cornbread Pudding

• 1 (17 oz.) can whole kernel corn
• 1 (17 oz.) can cream style corn
• 1 stick butter, melted and cooled
• 1 (8 oz.) pkg. sour cream
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 pkg. Jiffy corn muffin mix

DIRECTIONS

Beat eggs. Add melted, cooled butter, sour cream, whole and creamed corn, and Jiffy mix and mix well to combine. Put into 2 1/2 quart casserole. Bake about 1 hour at 350 degrees.

Best BBQ Beans Ever

[REPOST] As you may have noticed, I haven't posted many recipes lately and that's because Matt and I have had a steady stream of visitors lately. So, we've been entertaining out-of-town guests and I haven't been doing much cooking lately--but Matt has been doing quite of bit of grilling since our weather here is warming up nicely.

When it comes to grilling I always think of beans as a side dish, but not just any beans...BBQ beans! This is a recipe I tweaked from Steven Raichlen. He makes his beans over a grill and adds wood chips to a smoker box to give it a smoky flavor. I, on the other hand, added smoked bacon and liquid smoke to my crock-pot beans to give it that "outdoorsy" taste. These beans are simply fabulous and a sure hit at any BBQ.

INGREDIENTS (feeds about 14 people)

• 1 pound smoked bacon cut into 2" pieces
• 1 can (15 ounces) black beans
• 1 can (15 ounces) dark red kidney beans
• 3 cans (each 15 ounces) baked beans or pork and beans
• 1 large sweet onion, finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and finely chopped
• 1 poblano pepper, seeded and finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and diced (for hotter beans, leave the seeds in)
• 1 Anaheim pepper, seeded and diced
• 2 cups sweet red barbecue sauce (your favorite commercial brand)
• 1-1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons liquid smoke (optional)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Place the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat and fry until crisp and golden brown, about 5 minutes. Pour off all the bacon fat, saving two tablespoons for the beans.
2. Empty the cans of black and kidney beans into a colander and drain. Rinse the beans under cold running water and drain again. Place all the beans (including the baked beans or pork and beans) in your Crock Pot and add the onion, bell and poblano peppers, garlic, and jalapeños and Anaheim peppers and stir to mix.
3. Add the barbecue sauce, brown sugar, mustard, liquid smoke, if using, and fried bacon and stir to mix. Taste for seasoning, adding more brown sugar and/or mustard as necessary, and add salt and black pepper; the beans should be very flavorful.
4. Place the lid on your Crock pot and set it to "High." The beans will be ready in about 4 hours. If you're cooking them over the stove top, simmer them for 1-1/2 to 2 hours, stirrings once in a while. Add the reserved bacon grease (if using) to the beans about 10 minutes before serving and stir well. Your beans will be perfect!

Recipe slightly modified from Steven Raichlen's BBQU.NET

Baked Spicy Chickpeas

Well, it's January 1st and our New Year's resolutions shall start again. This time my resolution is to eat more healthy foods and get more legumes and veggies in my diet. Since I've been so sick since Monday, I've been living on tea and chicken broth, but today I decided I wanted a snack. I could not find anything in the house to snack on except a can of chickpeas. So, after getting some ideas from other blogs, I came up with this spicy baked chickpeas. They are so addicting to snack on...I ate the entire thing!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 can garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. cayenne
• 1/4 tsp. ground coriander
• 1/4 tsp. paprika
• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/8 tsp. ground allspice

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Rinse the chickpeas, drain them and dry them well. Place in a bowl with olive oil, and all the spices. Mix well.

Now place the chickpeas in a baking tray or into a shallow baking dish. Cook in a pre-heated 400F oven for 15 minutes. Give the pan a little shake and continue baking until crispy and golden on the outside, about 10 to 15 more minutes. You may want to bake them a little longer if you prefer a crispier snack. Sprinkle a little more kosher salt as soon as they come out, but let them cool a little before you devour them!

Holy Mole Experiment

Perhaps you may think I'm a bit crazy trying to make mole from scratch, and perhaps you are right. If you decide you want to try to make homemade mole you will need: patience, a well ventilated kitchen, your mise en place ready, and a huge stock pot.

Also, mole is one of those sauces that can be adjusted to your taste. If you don't want to add cilantro, you don't have to; you can use toasted cashews if you want; want to add Mexican oregano? Go ahead. It's just one of those recipes that can be customized to your liking, and the one below is basically what I thought up. Make sure you finely grind your spices before you start so that they are ready to go (I used my coffee grinder for this). And soak your dried chiles 10 to 15 minutes before you start so that they soften a little. The measurements below are approximate because mole is definitely an "eye ball it" type of recipe.

Lastly, if you've never had mole before, I suggest you go to a good Mexican restaurant and try it out first. It's definitely one of those dishes you either hate or you love. There are no in-betweens. The sauce is sweet, spicy, smokey, nutty, chocolatey and somewhat herbally. Serve mole over tortillas filled with refried beans, called enmoladas, or over cooked chicken or turkey or seafood. The recipe below made about 8 cups of mole. I poured most of it into 8oz containers and froze it since I'll be distributing some to my family. Have fun!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup peanuts, toasted and chopped
• 1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 tortillas, torn apart
• 5 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
• 3 tomatoes, quartered
• 1 large white onion, roughly chopped
• 1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and deveined and roughly chopped
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 bay leaves
• 1/4 cup chicken base or bouillon
• Mole Spices consisting of:
  1. 1 tablesspoon cinnamon
  2. 1 tablespoon corriander
  3. 1 tablespoon Thyme
  4. 1 tablespoon Majoram
  5. 4 cloves
  6. 1/2 Tsp. Allspice
  7. 2 Star anise
  8. 10 peppercorns
  9. 1/2 tablespoon cumin
  10. 1/2 tablespoon Mexican Oregano
• 10 dried Pasillas, stemmed and seeded and softened in 6 cups hot water
• 4 dried Guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded and softened in 2 cup hot water
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 Bunch Cilantro
• 1 Bunch Epazote (optional)
• 1 Bunch parsley
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 discs of Mexican Chocolate, chopped (La Abuelita brand, if possible)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon Hickory smoke liquid
• Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS

In a large stock pot, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil on medium-high. Add the torn tortillas and lightly fry up to soften. Add the garlic, onion, tomatoes and jalapenos, mole spices and 1 teaspoon salt. Saute for 8 to 10 minutes, or until everything is softened. In the meantime, chop up the softened pasilla and guajillo chiles.

Add the cinnamon stick, bay leaves, and chicken base. Next add the chopped up passillas and guajillo chiles, and also add all the water the chiles were soaking in. Next add the chopped peanuts and walnuts, raisins, cilantro, epazote, parsley, brown sugar, both types of chocolate, hickory smoke and vinegar. Bring to a boil then simmer for 1 hour. Remove cinnamon stick and bay leaves.

With a heavy-duty hand blender, blend all ingredients in the pot, just until everything is broken down into smaller pieces. Taste for seasoning and add more salt, if needed. Simmer another 20 minutes. Turn off heat and let cool for half an hour.

Now, blend the mole in batches in your regular blender. Start on low and slowly move it to high this way you won't get too many spills. Be careful because mole is still warm. Blend until you can get a smooth, thick consistancy. Let cool to room temperature then store in containers and freeze.

To make Enmoladas:

• 2 tortillas
• Refried beans
• Olive oil
• 1/2 cup mole
• Queso fresco

DIRECTIONS

Heat up homemade or your favorite refried beans. Set aside.

In a skillet, heat up 2 teaspoons olive oil on medium-high. Add 1 tortilla at a time and fry for 40 seconds on each side, or until they turn slightly golden and are pliable.

Place tortillas on serving plate and fill each one with refried beans and fold tortilla, like a taco.

In the same skillet (you should still have some oil left) add the mole and fry it up until it begins to bubble. Pour the mole over the refried bean tacos and then sprinkle queso fresco over it and enjoy.

Black Beans and Rice

Since my hubby is on travel doing his training, I haven't been cooking much. I had forgotten what a hassle it is to cook just for one. I figured it's just easier to order take out than to cook for myself, but it isn't too healthy eating out all the time. So I'm saying "no" to the taco joints and sushi places and I'll start cooking for myself. I started with the simplest (and the tastiest) dish, black beans and rice. You can make this meal completely vegetarian by substituting the chicken stock with vegetable broth. Mmm, and a side of tostones would make this the perfect dish!

INGREDIENTS (serves 4, but you can save left overs for the next day and make burritos)

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup chopped onions
• 1/4 cup chopped green peppers (I used red)
• 2 cloves of minced garlic
• 1 Roma tomato, diced
• 1 (15oz) can black beans(undrained)
• 3/4 cup low sodium chicken stock or broth
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• Pinch of brown sugar
• 1 package sazon Goya (without annato *see note)
• 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
• 2 cups cooked white rice, preferably Mahatma rice

DIRECTIONS

Heat oil in a medium sauce pan and sauté onion for 5 minutes. Add green pepper, chopped tomato and garlic and saute until tender, about 4-5 more minutes.

Add in the remaining ingredients, except cooked rice, and stir until boiling. Reduce heat and simmer until sauce is reduced, about 12 - 15 minutes. Add the cilantro during the last minute of cooking.

Mash a few of the beans with the back of a spoon to thicken the sauce a little more. Serve black beans over white rice, or serve it as we like it in Latin America by mixing the black beans and rice all together like a happy family.

Note: if you do not have Sazòn Goya an appropriate substitute would be ground cumin, chicken bouillon, and garlic salt to taste.

Moros y Cristianos (Cuban Style Black Beans & Rice)

This dish is always a big hit at parties. The combination of black beans, rice and ground beef is such a sinful, yet healthy, combination. This dish is a staple in Cuba and it's extremely popular in Florida—especially in Miami.

My sister-in-law found this recipe in a Recipezaar and in order to make the dish slightly less healthy, she used ground beef instead of the crumbled turkey sausage that the original recipe calls for. And if you want to make it even more flavorful, try using bulk Italian sausage. In my opinion, Mona Lisa deli has the best bulk sausage in San Diego. Buen provecho!

INGREDIENTS (10 servings)

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped (you want 1 cup of chopped onions)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ½ cup tomato sauce
• 1 (15 3/4 ounce) can chicken broth
• 2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 ½ to 2 lb. cooked crumbled ground beef or bulk Italian sausage
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• ½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1 cup diced green bell peppers
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 cups cooked white rice
• Cilantro, for garnish
• parmesan cheese (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Heat oil in pan and sauté onion and garlic for 2 minutes.

Add tomato sauce and broth and bring to boil.

Add next seven ingredients (beans through bay leaf) and bring to boil.

Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Discard bay leaf before serving; place the cooked white rice in a large serving bowl or platter and top serve the bean-sausage mixture over rice; gently toss to combine and sprinkle parmesan cheese, if desired, and add cilantro for garnish.

Nathalie's Breakfast

While I was in Oahu a couple of weeks ago visiting my sister, I had this huge breakfast one morning. And who made it? None other than my sister, Nathalie. Actually, while I was growing up, both my mom and step-mom used to cook us similar breakfasts for us...so it looks like the tradition passed on to my sister. And yes, we eat Pork and Beans for breakfast--I think it's a Mexican thing--or it could be just an Amador thing. Anyhoo, this is definitely the breakfast of champions. I bet you that if the Padres eat this for breakfast they'll win the World Series this year!

INGREDIENTS (serves 2)

• Vegetable or Canola oil for frying
• 1 lb. red potatoes (about 2 large ones), peeled and cut into 1/2" cubes
• 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
• 4 large eggs
• 1 can Pork and Beans
• 6 slices of bacon
• Salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Home Fries: Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until soft. Add potatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook until almost cooked through, about 15 minutes. Remove cover and continue cooking for 5 to 10 minutes until golden brown.

Bacon: While the home fries are cooking, take a large cookie sheet with a lip and cover it in aluminum foil. Arrange the bacon on the sheet without overlapping. Bake for six minutes. Turn the cookie sheet around 180 degrees. Bake for another 4-7 minutes depending on your oven and how crispy you like your bacon. Lift the bacon out with tongs and set on a plate covered in paper towels.

Beans: Pour can of beans into a small sauce pan and cook on medium-low until it comes to a simmer. Keep beans warm until ready to serve.

Over Easy Eggs: Over medium heat, warm a small amount of oil or butter, perhaps 1 1/2 tsp., in a small (8-inch) nonstick skillet. Crack two eggs into the pan. Cook until the white appears slightly solid, about 2 to 3 minutes. Carefully flip the egg over onto the yolk side and cook another 2 to 3 minutes, depending on how "easy" you want your eggs.

Finale: Serve two over-easy eggs, three slices of crispy bacon, a nice amount of home fries and pork and beans. Looks like meat is back on the menu, boys!

Dave Baggs Ultimate Chili

Last Saturday it was Girls Night In (yeah, we're too lame to go out and party) and my sister-in-law made us her dad's famous chili. Why is it famous, you ask? Well, seems that this chili was the winner of a couple of Chili Cook-Off's in Crested Butte, Colorado. This chili is actually more like a hearty soup and it's excellent for those cold, winter evenings in San Diego when the temperature drops to 50! ;-)

INGREDIENTS (makes a lot of chili)

• 2 pounds lean ground beef, or ground turkey
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 (28 oz.) cans whole tomatoes, chopped (you can use cans of chopped tomatoes, but if you want to do it the Baggs way, you gotta buy whole tomatoes, then chop them...yeah, it's a Baggs thing), with juices reserved
• 2 (16 oz) cans beans in chili
• 1 can (4oz.) Ortega chopped green chilies
• 1 large onion, chopped + 1/2 cup reserved for topping
• 1 1/2 cups chopped celery
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 2 pickled jalapenos, finely chopped (use one or omit it altogether if you're a wuss)
• 1 1/2 oz. Gephardt’s Eagle Brand Chili powder (yes, that's half the bottle and it has to be Gephardt’s for the recipe to work...yet, another Baggs thing)
• Grated cheddar cheese, for topping
• Fritos, for topping

DIRECTIONS

In a large skillet, cook the beef, add salt, and cook until no longer pink. Drain, reserving about a tablespoon of the grease. Set cooked ground beef aside.

In a large stewpot, on medium-high heat, add the reserved grease. Sauté the onion, green bell pepper, celery, and green chilies for 3 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes, beans, cooked ground beef, jalapenos, and chili powder. Add the reserved tomato juices, water (two 28 oz. can-fulls), or to your desired consistency. You want the chili to be more like a soup, so add more or less water. Simmer for 2 hours.

Serve with chopped onions, grated cheese and Fritos, as toppings.

Easy Baked Beans

I like to eat baked beans (or pork and beans) once in a while, but I always find that they are too sweet for me. My husband, on the other hand, loves sweet baked beans, so I came up with a happy medium. These beans still have that sweet taste from the brown sugar, but the molasses give it an almost smoky flavor and the tomato sauce gives it some tartness. However, if you do like more sweetness on your beans, just add an additional tablespoon of brown sugar to the recipe.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 slices of thick-cut bacon, cut into 1" pieces
• 1 medium red onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 (15oz) cans of white Navy beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 heaping tablespoons molasses
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 (8oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 cup beer, preferably a pale ale or light beer (you can use 1 cup low-sodium chicken stock if you prefer not to use the beer)
• 1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt, or to taste

DIRECTIONS

Heat a large 4-quart pot or dutch oven to medium high. Add the bacon and cook until crispy, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside.

In the same pot, add the diced onions and garlic to the bacon grease and sautee for 2 to 3 minutes or until onions become soft.

Then add the remaining ingredients: white beans, molasses, brown sugar, tomato sauce, beer, salt and pepper and add the crispy bacon bits back to the pot. Bring the beans to a boil then lower heat to a simmer.

Simmer the beans, uncovered, for 20 to 30 minutes, or until they become rich and thick. Serve them immediately with your bangers and mash. The beans will taste even better the next day. Try eating them for breakfast (the Mexican way) with scrambled eggs and tortillas. You will be amazed how good it tastes!

Cincinnati Chili

I was intrigued by this recipe because I had never seen spaghetti noodles topped with chili. I first heard about Cincinnati Chili when I saw a show about it on the Food Network. Apparently this dish is huge in Cincinnati, Ohio. Then, in the PBS show, Americas Test Kitchen, they made the recipe and I just had to try it. Although I followed the recipe verbatim, the one below has a few changes, but it still tasted great.

INGREDIENTS (serves 4 to 6)

• 2 teaspoons table salt or more to taste
• 1 1/2 pounds ground beef chuck
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 medium onions, chopped fine (reserve a 1/2 cup for topping)
• 2 medium cloves garlic, minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons dark brown sugar
• 2 cups tomato sauce

ACCOMPANIMENTS

• 1 pound spaghetti, cooked, drained, and tossed with 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter
• 12 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1 can red kidney beans (15-ounce), drained, rinsed, and warmed

DIRECTIONS

1. FOR THE CHILI: Bring 2 quarts of water and 1 teaspoon of the salt to a boil in a large saucepan. Add the ground chuck, stirring vigorously to separate the meat into individual strands. As soon as the foam from the meat rises to the top (this takes about 1 minute) and before the water returns to a boil, drain the meat into a strainer and set it aside.

   

2. Rinse and dry the empty saucepan. Set the pan over medium heat and add the oil. When the oil is warm, add the onions and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are soft and browned around the edges, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.

3. Stir in the chili powder, oregano, cocoa, cinnamon, cayenne, allspice, black pepper, cumin and the remaining 1 teaspoon salt.
   
   Cook, stirring constantly, until the spices are fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the broth, water, vinegar, sugar, and tomato sauce, scraping the pan bottom to remove any browned bits.

Pork and Beans

I've been going to a lot of parties lately. This month I've been to bridal showers, birthday parties, dinner parties...and every single time I end up bringing party leftovers to the house--which eventually end up in the trash because we forget to eat it. The #1 leftover I tend to bring home is baked ham. My family loves to bake hams, but we always end up with tons of leftovers. The following recipe is excellent for that baked ham you have in your fridge. You can substitute the ham with cooked pork loin or pulled pork.

INGREDIENTS

• 2lb Navy Beans (about 4 cups)
• 6 cups water
• 2 pints chicken broth, low sodium
• 1 can beef consomme
• 4 slices bacon, chopped
• 1 medium Onion
• 5 cloves Garlic, minced
• 3 Shallots, diced
• 1/2 cup Whiskey
• 2 tsp Chicken Base (bouillon)
• 1/2 tsp. Seasoning Salt
• 1/2 tsp. Pepper
• 3 Carrots, diced
• 1/4 cup Worchester Sauce
• 3 dashes Soy Sauce
• 1/4 cup Brown Sugar
• 4 cups (or more) of cooked baked ham, pulled pork or pork tenderloin, cut into bite size pieces.

1. Soak the beans overnight in a pot of water. Drain.
2. Place navy beans, 6 cups water, beef consomme and chicken broth in large pot. Bring to boil and simmer for 2 hours.**Make sure you have about one inch of liquid above the beans, if not, add more water** DO NOT ADD SALT.
3. In the meantime, cook the bacon in a non-stick skillet. Drain bacon in a paper towel and set aside (do not discard the bacon grease).
4. In the bacon grease, saute the onion, garlic and shallots on medium heat.
5. Once the onions are tender (about 4 minutes), add the chicken base and seasoning salt to taste. Raise the heat to medium-high and pour the whiskey in the skillet and let it get hot. Move the skillet away from the burner and light the whiskey and flambe until the fire goes out. Please be careful when doing this.
6. Add the onion flambe and its juices to the simmering beans and the remaining ingredients: baked ham, crispy bacon, pepper, carrots, Worchester sauce, soy sauce and brown sugar.
7. Continue simmering for another 30 minutes, and add more water, if necessary. Taste beans and add salt, if necessary.
8. When ready to serve, garnish the beans with finely chopped parsely and serve with homemade bread. A good hearty beer such as Guinness or a Michelob Amber Stock goes great with this meal.