Recipe #22 Old Fashioned Baked Beans

2 cups Thompson's White Pea Beans
5 cups cold water
1 medium onion, sliced
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp. vinegar
1 tbsp. brown sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 tsp prepared mustard
1/4 cup Molasses
1/2 cup tomato ketchup
Pinch black pepper
1/4 lb salt pork or bacon,sliced

Sort and rinse the beans then soak them in cold water overnight. Drain and add 5 cups of fresh cold water, cover, heat to boiling, then simmer 30 minutes or under nearly tender. Drain the beans reserving the liquid. Place onion slices on bottom of a 6 cup casserole (we use a cast iron pot with a lid). Add remaining 7 ingredients to the beans, stirring gently to combine, then pour the beans into the casserole. Add the reserved liquid and enough water to cover the beans, then place sliced lean salt pork or bacon on top. Cover with the lid and bake at 250 degrees F for 7 hours. About four hours into the cooking time and every hour after that, check the beans to make sure they have enough liquid - add more if needed. About 1 hour before the end of the cooking time, remove 1 cup of beans, mash, then stir back into pot carefully. Uncover the casserole to allow the beans to darken and add salt to taste.

We used to make this recipe in our cast iron dutch oven cooked in a wood cookstove. We were very fortunate to have a wood cookstove at our cottage on Lake Duborne. Although, we sold the cottage in 2000, it has left us with many memories of cooking wonderful meals this way.