These beans make a divine dish for a party or a campout. Topped with a rosette of thin tomato wedges and broiled until blackened around the edges, they’re as pretty as they are tasty. You can add the protein of your choice for a different flavor. Smoked tempeh is a good option.
- 3 red, orange or yellow bell peppers, diced
- 2 onions, diced
- 3-4 tablespoons olive oil
Saute until semi-soft.
- 2 6-0z cans tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons prepared mustard
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons chipotle (or other) hot sauce
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 1/2 cup dextrose powder (or 1/3 cup table sugar)
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
- bean juice from 2 cans of beans (see below)
- 1 teaspoon salt
Blend.
- 4 cans navy beans (or other white bean), drained
Stir together beans, sauce and sauteed peppers and onions. Place in large stoneware bowl. Bake for 30 minutes at 350F.
- 1 tomato, sliced into thin wedges
Take the beans out of the oven. Decorate with tomato wedges to fill the top surface. Broil for 10 minutes or until the tomatoes are blackened around the edges and the sauce has begun to caramelize on top.
Helen’s note:
We have taken these beans camping for years with the girls and their many cousins. We recently served them at our empty nest party, celebrating 25 years of parenting three lovely daughters (we did it!) and our return to the twosome we created so long ago. In those days, our favorite meal was instant mashed potatoes, blackened hot dogs and canned green beans. You will see after eating these beans that we have been practicing in the kitchen a bit since then.
June 2016 note:
Barbecued Tempeh
My sister Katherine her husband Tomás asked me to convert this recipe to the grilled barbecued tempeh that Scott and I served them on their recent visit when they came to town for the Ragnar race (go, Team What Was I Thinking? !). Here it is:
Make the sauce as described above. Cut the tempeh into slices about 3/8″ thick. Boil them for 15-20 minutes to expand the tempeh. Lay the slices out on a well oiled baking pan. Brush them with sauce and broil. Turn midway through and brush the other side. Broil until just blackened. Enjoy!