Boston Baked Beans

2 cups navy beans or canned small white beans
1/2 pound bacon
1 onion, finely diced
3 Tbsp molasses
2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp dry mustard
1/2 cup ketchup
1 Tbsp worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar

Soak beans overnight in cold water or use canned beans. Simmer the beans in the same water until tender, approximately 1-2 hours. Drain and reserve the liquid. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Arrange the beans in a 2 quart casserole dish or bean pot and layer them with bacon and onion. In a saucepan, combine molasses, salt, pepper, dry mustard, ketchup, worcestershire sauce and brown sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil and pour over beans. Pour in just enough of the reserved bean liquid to cover the beans. Cover the dish and bake 3-4 hours until beans are tender. About halfway through the cooking time, add a little more liquid, if necessary, to keep beans from getting dry.

This recipe goes great with ribs and tastes even better with a little bit of rib meat added in addition to the bacon.

Lemon Green Beans

3/4 lb green beans, trimmed and washed
2 Tbsp lemon rind strips
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Steam the green beans for minutes or until crisp-tender. Toss with lemon rind, olive oil, salt and pepper. Yield: 4 servings

Chive Smashed Potatoes

1 lb potatoes cut into 3/4 inch pieces
1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
2 Tbsp minced fresh chives
2 Tbsp skim milk
1/4 tsp salt

Steam potatoes 15 minutes or until tender. Combine potatoes with remaining ingredients and mash to desired consistency. Yield: 4 servings

Sweet and Spicy Coleslaw

For our 23rd Anniversary, David decided to treat me to a homecooked meal of baby-back ribs and coleslaw. He purchased a new smoker/grill and researched lots of recipes for rubs, sauces and coleslaw. This is the amazing coleslaw recipe he found in Mens Health magazine courtesy of Neely's Bar-B-Que in Memphis, TN.

2 lbs green cabbage
4 carrots
1 medium yellow onion
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup mustard
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 cup sugar
1 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Quarter the cabbage and remove the core. Cut the carrots and onion into chunks. Grate the vegetables in a food processor using the large holed grater attachment. Then toss them together in a large bowl. For the dressing, whisk together the remaining ingredients. Toss the dressing with the vegetables, add salt and pepper to taste, and chill at least 2 hours. Makes 6-8 servings.

Orzo, Tomato and Zucchini Toss

1 tsp olive oil
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
1 cup chopped zucchini
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
3 cups cooked orzo
1/4 tsp salt

Heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add tomatoes, zucchini and garlic. Saute 2 minutes. Stir in seasoning and red pepper. Saute 1 minute or until zucchini is crisp tender. Combine tomato mixture with orzo and salt. Toss well.

This is a great side dish for Chicken Scallopini

Green Beans with Warm Bacon Dressing

1 lb trimmed fresh green beans
2 strips bacon
1/4 cup chopped shallots
2 Tbsp white wine vinegar

Cook green beans in boiling water 3 minutes or until crisp tender. Cook bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan. Crumble. Add shallots to drippings in pan and cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add vinegar to shallots and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add grean beans and toss to coat. Sprinkle with crumbled bacon.

Mediterranean Couscous Salad

1 box garlic and olive oil cous cous mix
1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1/2 lb cherry tomatoes, halved
2-3 green onions, sliced
2-3 Tbsp pine nuts, toasted (can substitute slivered almonds)

Cook couscous according to package directions. Lightly toast pine nuts in a hot skillet (sometimes I skip this step when pressed for time). Add feta, tomatoes, green onions, and pine nuts to couscous and fluff with a fork. Served chilled or at room temperature.
Yield: 6 servings