Pressure Cooked Boston Baked Beans

Beans, beans, good for the heart... well actually, they're good for the whole body:@) They are a great source of protein and fiber, economical, freeze well and just taste great! It's grilling season, is there a better side dish than baked beans for a BBQ? I've been testing recipes using dry beans for years now...

Pulled out my ♥4 quart electronic pressure cooker♥ from QVC and it worked great! 

No presoaking necessary and you'll be eating dry navy beans from start to finish in an hour. 

A bonus, the electronic PC's don't heat up your house-gotta love that!

Boston Baked Beans-modified from Lorna Sass
1 1/2 C dry navy beans, sorted and rinsed
2 bay leaves
6 C water
2 Tblsp oil 2 slices bacon, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 C molasses
1/4 C Dijon mustard-I had it so I used it, I think any mustard will do
1/4 C tomato paste
4 whole cloves-I used 2
1 cinnamon stick-I used 1/2 stick
1-3 tsp vinegar-I used 1 tsp
1 tsp salt

1. Place beans, bay, water and 1 Tblsp oil in PC (I didn't add the oil), bring to high pressure for 15 minutes. Automatically release pressure, or place under running water if you have a stove top PC.
2. Drain beans reserving 2 cups of liquid. Place beans and 2 cups liquid back into PC.
3. In skillet, add 1 Tblsp oil or cook bacon till it begins to render fat, add onion and garlic and cook till they soften a little, about 3-4 minutes.
4. Add molasses, mustard, tomato paste and spices to skillet. I chose to add 1/2 tsp of kosher salt now.
5. Pour this over the beans, do not stir. Don't know why we shouldn't, but I didn't.
6. Return to high pressure for 10 minutes then automatically release pressure, or place under running water if you have a stove top PC. .
7. Before serving remove bay, cloves and cinnamon. Stir in vinegar and salt (if using).
8. The mixture will thicken as it stands (and it truly does), but you can mash some of the beans if you'd like to thicken it quicker.

Notes:

• This is the technique (from dry, 15 and 10 minutes) I've been looking for! It produced nice soft, mostly whole navy beans. 
• I find the cinnamon, quite frankly... odd in this. I should have followed my instinct and not added it. 
• The sauce even had that thick orange/brown color, without the spices these beans would be similar to a standard can of pork and beans.
• You'll have about 2 Tblsp of tomato paste left over from a 6 oz can, just wrap in plastic wrap, freeze it and add to soup, pasta sauce, chili, etc.
• I'll be using this technique to make beans again soon using the BBQ flavorings that I like. I look forward to posting that recipe, I feel I'm 1-2 batches away from a true keeper:@)
• 7/17/12-Update: After living with these beans for a while (freezing serving sized bags for lunch and using this first batch up), I decided I really like the cloves, they are different and do add a nice flavor.

Have a happy day!

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