Baked beans fit the bill as this winter seems to have dragged on forever!

I’ve been writing all day and I fancied something hot and sustaining. How about beans on toast  with poached egg?

This recipe is for home-made baked beans.  Not tinned beans – home-made beans!  Here’s the quick and easy recipe, served on my sourdough toast. More about sourdough another day.

Think about the beans first.  I tend to pressure cook pinto beans or cannelloni beans and then freeze them in small batches but you can easily buy beans in jars or cans. It’s just cheaper to buy them dried!

 

INGREDIENTS for four portions

Onion x 1

Garlic clove x 1

Carrot x 1

Fennel, small wedge

Small apple x 1

Oil – your choice

400g Cooked beans or canned cannelloni or pinto beans (and some of the juice)

400ml passata or two tins chopped tomatoes

Salt, black pepper

30ml Tamarind sauce 

30ml Molasses or black treacle 

10 ml cider vinegar

Pinch of Allspice

A good grating of nutmeg – or a good pinch of ready-ground nutmeg

 

Finely chop one onion, one clove of garlic, half a carrot, apple and a small wedge from a lovely bulb of fresh fennel.

Fry gently in a little oil (I use olive oil but any oil will do) until soft. Take your time over this so it becomes really soft with no brown edges.

Add passata or chopped tomatoes, then add the cooked/tinned/jarred beans with most of their juice (save some to add later if necessary). Mix together gently and bring to the boil,  then immediately turn down the heat so it is gently burbling away.

Add the tamarind, molasses, cider vinegar and mix it in then continue to cook on a gentle simmer for about 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.  The idea is to incorporate all the ingredients and flavours and for the vinegar to meld into the sauce.  Taste. Then add salt and black pepper. You are aiming for a balanced proportion of sauce to bean!

The mixture should be fairly thick but with enough sauce to make it soft and yummy. If it feels like there is too much sauce, just cook for longer with no lid.

This makes sufficient to fill two 720g jars.  Wash the jars in hot soapy water, rinse then put in microwave for a minute to dry off.  Fill the jars then seal with a wax circle (as if you were making jam).  Allow to cool and the put on the lid.  These will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks, but I suggest using within two days once the jar is opened.

I can assure you they are yummy .  As you can see, mine was served on toast with poached egg.

 

Now.  Back to writing.