Wild Wild West Gauntlets and Cowboy Baked Beans

It's hard to believe it's that time again. Fall weather and the change in seasons are being felt even here in Southern California where some think there were no changes to the seasons. But there are changes and the longer I've lived here the more apparent they are. It's not just that the stores are selling corduroy pants and foil wrapped chocolates shaped like leaves. It's the tinge of coolness in the mornings, the emergence of rust colored flora, and the golden cast to the light in the evenings. I treasure these small changes. Until it gets down right cold in another month or so at which point I start wondering why exactly it was that I wanted cooler weather.

Over the years I'e found that gauntlets are one of my most used fall/winter accessory and every year I knit several pairs. The gauntlets I am wearing today I call my Wild Wild West Gauntlets because they are inspired by my love the outdoors and the America west. And since I was particularly pleased with this design I have written up the pattern which I've made into a free download (link below). I hope you will enjoy making them and wearing them as much as I have.

Particulars: pattern by Claudia Bugh available as a free pdf download Wild Wild West Gauntlets; 2 skeins Organik worsted yarn by The Fiber Company (approximately 200 yrds); US 8 circular needles and DPN.

Cowboy Baked Beans Recipe ~

Cowboys practically lived off cooked beans while on the trail. I know this to be a fact based on my extensive reading of western romance novels. Ahem. Intrigued by the notion I have often attempted to make bean soup or baked beans but I've been disappointed with the recipes I've tried. So I tossed aside my recipes and came up with this way to cook them and I was very happy with the result. I liked the soft texture and rich flavor and hope you enjoy them cooked this way too. Incidentally, while we try and eat healthfully all the time this is probably one of the healthier recipes I've shared on the blog.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 Cups dried Anasazi Beans (found in organic section of grocery story or health food stores)
32 Ounces Chicken Stock
1 diced fresh tomato
1 diced sweet yellow onion
2 Tbs Olive Oil
Kosher sea salt to taste

Steps:

1. Wash and sort Anasazi beans. Not only is this variety of bean very flavorful, it requires no advance pre-soaking. Place beans into a large stock pot and cover with water and boil for approximately 1 hour or follow package instructions for cooking beans.

2. Drain beans from water and remove any excess water with a tea towel. Set cooked beans aside while you perform step 3.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Saute onion in olive oil until slightly caramelized. In a separate deep pot (oven safe with a lid and preferably cast-iron) combine cooked beans along with the diced tomato and the chicken stock (I use slightly less than a full 32 ounce container of chicken stock). You want the chicken stock to cover the beans and tomato mixture by approximately 1 inch. This should be enough moisture to keep the beans moist and still allow the beans to develop a thick sauce as they bake in the oven. Lastly stir in the sauteed onion and cover pot.

4. Bake for approximately 2.5 hours and salt to taste. The beans should be soft at this point and the chicken stock cooked down until level with the beans.

And here's my little buckaroo. He enjoys these beans too and ate a pot while standing on his hind legs as they were cooling on the counter just the other evening. I hope his time spent in his crate reflecting on his actions will prevent this from reoccurring.

Until next time, be well and love well and may these days of fall be filled with color, texture and anticipation of the holidays to come.