Boston Baked Beans - very rich

about 3 cups of small white beans (raw)
1 medium yellow, onion coursely chopped
1/2 cup of ketchup
1 large 24 oz can (or close to it) of canned tomatoes
1 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of pepper
12 oz of molasses (the darker the better)
1/4 pound of smoked bacon, cut into 1" slices

let them simmer for several hours is best, or let them sit overnight and reheat.

Bring small white beans to a rolling boil in 6 quarts of water, reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour. Remove, strain, and rinse with cold water. Set aside to drip dry. Slice raw bacon into 1-inch wide pieces.

Coarsely chop 1 onion and place into bean pot with tight-fitting lid. Add ketchup, canned tomatoes, salt, pepper, molasses and bacon. Add beans and bacon, stir gently until mixed with large wooden spoon (be careful not to over-stir as beans will be fragile).

Place bean pot in 350*F oven until you first smell the beans cooking; reduce heat to *250 and allow to cook slowly for at least 2 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent the mixture from sticking to the sides of the pot. Be sure to allow enough room for the beans to boil, keep the mixture at least 1" from the top rim of the pot to prevent overflow. It's wise to keep a cookie sheet or aluminum foil on the rack below the bean pot to protect your oven from spillage and overflow.

Serving Size: will feed a large crowd as a main course, up to 24 people if there are other dishes as well. Goes wonderfully as a compliment with road turkey or roast chicken.

Number of Servings: 16

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user GRANTMUNDELL.