Mighty Good Bean Pot

Charlotte’s Mighty Good Bean Pot that is.

With apologies to my Aunt Pat’s dear friend Charlotte, this is my take on her scrumptious Good Bean Pot Recipe. Charlotte used fresh green beans and mushrooms but I can’t notice the difference in using canned and the canned take less work. I am all for less work. She also did not put the green chilés into this. They are a wonderful addition!

I first had Mighty Good Bean Pot at one of my Aunt Pat’s legendary dinner parties. Aunt Pat loved to cook! Her meals all came with wonderful creative starters, hearty fancy main dishes, and fancy desserts. An invitation to her house for dinner was a prized thing! I went to nearly every dinner party because I knew how to work with her in the kitchen. Very few people could do that! Mostly, you just remembered she was Queen and it all went well. She was all of 4’9” and quite a spitfire with a penchant for very strong language.

During a particularly bleak time in my employment history (I was unemployed) she had me over nearly every night just to make sure I was eating. She even kept catsup in her house just for me even though she loathed it. Well, she took good care of me and when she got older I tried to take good care of her. I still miss her after all these years.

One last thing, she wasn’t really my Aunt. Her younger Sister married my Father’s baby brother. So, it was a bit of a family stretch for me to call her my Aunt but we both liked the idea, so we made it work. She lived in Phoenix and when I first moved to Phoenix she was the only person I knew in the whole state! I felt welcomed and loved as I built my life there.

She could cook! So could her friends. This recipe is a derivation from an often requested dish made by one of Aunt Pat’s contemporaries, Charlotte.

Charlotte’s Good Bean Pot Goes New Mexican

Ingredients & Instructions (it is that easy!)

Assemble all the ingredients before hand and be sure to have the garlic chopped up.

8 slices of bacon cut into small pieces

9 oz hard salami cut into small pieces

2 C. chopped onions

Sauté until bacon is done but not crispy and onions are opaque

Add the following:

2 cans of green beans, drained and water discarded

2 cans (4 oz.) mushrooms, drained and water discarded

1 28 oz. can of pork and beans including all liquids, do not drain

2 cans butter beans drained and water discarded

1 can (4 oz) green chilés

½ C. mustard (regular plain yellow mustard)

1/3 C. maple syrup

1 head of garlic chopped (about 12 cloves)

2 t. Italian seasoning

2 bay leaves

Gently stir until mixed

Bake at 350° for 35-45 minutes or until the top is bubbling

This has a HUGE flavor and is a real crowd pleaser. It makes a great tailgate addition as well as a pot luck dish.

It is almost too simple to taste as good as it does!

I miss you Aunt Pat!