Peach Baked Beans

 Peachy Baked Beans

1 lb. dry great northern beans

1 c. finely chopped cooked ham

1 large onion

1/2 c. peach preserves

1 c. peach nectar or apple juice

1/2 c. pure maple syrup

3 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce

1/2 tsp. salt

Rinse the beans.  Combine the beans and 8 cups cold water in a large Dutch oven.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes.  Remove from the heat, cover and let stand for 1 hour.  (Or you can omit the simmering and just soak the beans in cold water overnight.)  Use a colander to drain and rinse.

In the same Dutch oven, combine the beans and 8 cups fresh water.  Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat.  Cover and simmer for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours until the beans are tender, stirring occasionally.  Drain the liquid from the beans.

Chop the onion.  Dice the chipotle peppers and remove the seeds if you don’t want much heat in the finished dish.  In a 3 quart casserole, combine the beans, ham, onion, preserves, peach nectar, maple syrup, chipotle peppers and salt.  Bake, covered, in a 300 degree oven for 2 hours.  Uncover and bake for about 1 hour more or until most of the liquid has been absorbed, stirring occasionally.  If necessary add additional peach nectar.

Note: to make this quicker, substitute 4 (15 oz.) cans great northern beans, rinsed and drained, for the 1 pound dry beans.  Reduce the baking time in the oven to 1 hour covered and 1 1/2 hours uncovered.