WOW! I just started making my homemade baked beans, again. They are soooo good! I make mine in a bean pot, a covered bean pot... I think the size and shape of it have a lot to do with how good the beans will come out. If you don't have a bean pot you must have a covered container. My bean pot holds two 1(one) lb packages of navy beans and that is what I would normally use.. but we are in a different house with a new to us oven and I started with just using one package (1 lb) and they came out fantastic.... they will seem too thin if you eat them on the same day that you have made them if you only cook them for the 5 hrs. An overnight in the fridge makes them perfect the next day! Long way of saying oven has lots to do with it. This is my Moms recipe... we had homemade baked beans every week growing up. It is her bean pot! 1. 1 lb package of navy beans 2. 1 lb of Salt Pork (NOT fatback) 3. 1 lb box of dark brown sugar 4. 3 Tbs. of Molasses 5. 1 large quartered onion 6. 3 Tbs. of mustard (can use dry or use a grainy or Dijon type mustard) Place dry beans in bean pot, cover with cold water, soak overnight. Alternatively, if short on time... cover beans with cold water, bring to boil for 2 minutes, turn off heat and let sit for 1 hour. Boil again for 2 minutes) After either, above, method, drain and rinse, rinse, rinse beans! It is very important to rinse off that liquid. Place 1/2 of beans in bean pot, add large dice salt pork, quartered onion and cover with cold water. Add brown sugar, molasses and mustard. Cover beans and bake in 325 oven for 5 hours, checking to make sure that beans stay (just) covered with water... if water is low, add more and give beans a stir from the bottom up. I either cook longer (maybe an hour, maybe more, really depends on your oven, just last night for 1 hour.. came out great.. but, still, even better the next day after fridge) or refrigerate to use the next day so that they are just right.. I like the beans to be coated and the bean "juice" to be somewhat thickish. You will know by looking at them that they are "right". If I use 2 lbs of dried beans, I only double the sugar. Mustard, molasses and salt pork amounts remain the same. Onion, too. Never more molasses, they will come out "tacky". The house smells heavenly when they are cooking! And they aren't ready until they are ready! No bites till done! Enjoy! Sea

Ended up the perfect advice, LindaC! I added all the rest of the liquid, then added flour in a cup at a time until it felt right. Total was only about 81/2 cups! No where near the 11 written. I ended up making hamburger buns and sandwich rolls (or very small loaves) from it. It's good, a little dense for burgers, but it'll eat!! Sure does taste good! Here's what they looked like when all baked....minus the bit that I sampled first! :-) Thanks again! Deanna

Hi all, Sorry for the delay in getting back with you. I have had a very busy time since I posted this recipe. I will attempt to answer your questions. Sorry for the mistakes. The recipe is sort of like quiche, without the crust. Yes, there really is 1/14 cup olive oil. I know it sounds like a lot (guess it is) but it's healthy! It also makes the dish very moist. Finally. There are about 6-8 small red sliced red potato's in the dish. Sorry again, SG

I've been reading these and all of trailrunner's post. They are just great. All the hints were great. I bake bread out of boredom, I rarely use a recipe, for better or worse and like the wet doughs as well as quicker higher yeast doughs for pizza. Someday I'll get that "super peel" with the cloth belt thingy. I am forced to pre-cook my thin pizza crusts without one- My favorite bread is an olive bread that is made locally in the East Bay and sold now only at the local Berkeley farmer's market- you can go to their bakery, and they will sell stuff to you, but it's not a store front, no sales help, no hours- if they are there they'll sell it to you- they're also fresh pasta makers- 'Phoenix Pastificio'- if you're ever in the area. I've never tried to make that bread, it's almost Holy to me...( although I know he uses a biga and those black Kalamata olives). It has a thin almost black burnt crust, with large ciabatta holes to the crumb and flavor to die for.