Texas barbecue beans

During our recent road trip to Baton Rouge, we had occasion to dine in Amarillo, TX at Rudy's.
It was a great place to sample Texas barbeque, while we were in awe of the brisket, we also fell in love with the Texas barbeque beans.

Upon returning home, Bob begged me to make them for him. I did my usual internet research for recipes. I was astonished to find that most recipes used a cans of pork & beans as a base. We had recently been give a huge bag of pinto beans, so there was no way I was going to use canned beans. I got out my pintos, rinsed them and soaked them overnight !!

Here is my take on Texas Barbeque Beans.
Let's talk about my modifications...lots of recipes called for the burnt ends of brisket, really ?? I guess in Texas they burn their brisket and always have those burnt ends around. Instead I used almost a pound of cooked bacon , I say almost because someone stole a few slices ;-)

The recipes also called for one 14 ounce can of whole tomatoes. I make my own tomato products, so I used 1 cup of my roasted tomato sauce and 1 cup of whole peeled tomatoes that I had frozen from last season. I am guessing any combination of fresh, canned or frozen will be fine.

Ingredients
    •    1 pound ( about 2 cups) dried pinto beans
    •    8 cups water
    •    1 pound bacon (or 2 cups brisket burnt ends, chopped)
    •    1 cup roasted tom sauce, 1 cup whole toms(or one 14-ounce can whole tomatoes)
    •    1 large onion, chopped
    •    1 cup barbecue sauce
    •    6 cloves garlic, minced
    •    1 poblano pepper, seeded and chopped
    •    1 tablespoon chili powder
    •    1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
    •    1 teaspoon salt
    •    2 teaspoon ground cumin
     
1) Wash beans and pour into large saucepan or dutch oven.
2) Chop the onion and pepper and garlic, add to the beans.

 3) Add the barbeque sauce, Worcestershire sauce, salt, cumin, and chili powder.

4) Add the tomatoes.

5) Bring to a boil while stirring. Reduce heat and allow to simmer for two hours, covered. Stir occasionally, bringing up the beans from the bottom.  A slow cooker/crockpot would work too.

6) Beans are done when soft but still hold their shape. The end product is a soupy, flavorful bean stew. I served it with corn muffins and raw veggies !

This is definitely the kind of recipe that begs for your own modifications and gets better  the longer the flavors can meld together. It was great several days later. To make it vegetarian, use fake bacon, soyrizo or liquid smoke to replace the bacon.

Maggie: April 2005-August 23 2014 May she rest in peace.

Yesterday was one of the hardest days, I had to say goodbye to one of my best friends, much too soon.
We adopted Max and Maggie five years ago from Christine who was dying of cancer. They were siblings and so glad to have each other as they made the transition into our home. Maggie was a very special cat, her beautiful blue eyes would stare right into the depths of my soul. Her fur was so soft, petting her was both luxurious and calming. She was demanding and vocal about it. She loved nothing better than to tell you all about what you needed to do for her and just exactly how to do it. She loved to be around us as we went about our daily rituals. She would not let us out of her sight when we returned from being away on travels. She was a snuggler and loved nothing better than to sleep on my face. She was an old soul with wisdom and comfort to share.

Two months ago we came to suspected she might have lymphoma, a malignant fast growing cancer but we held out hope that it could be something curable. She was so young and seemingly healthy. If you have pets that you love you know what we have been going though. My heart aches and the tears make it tough to type this tribute.

Maggie is survived by her brother Max, Bob, Genna, myself and all those who knew and loved her. She is preceded by her first mom, Christine.
I will let these photos of her tell the rest of the story.
May she rest in peace with Christine.

Maggie and Max were often found snuggled together.

She loved to rest her chin on any surface.

 

A pillow was perfect.

Niece Sara made an acceptable napping spot.

 

 

 

Or Bob.

The sink was an acceptable receptacle while I was taking a bath.

More sleep time with Max.

She loved to chase the newspaper faeries around the bed on Sunday mornings, if she caught them she delighted in ripping off their wings.

Couch play with Genna.

Bags were good.

Advent calender with kitty treats in them, great fun.

Her favorite toy was the small yellow spring you can see if you look to the right under her chin.

 

 

 

Computers were a distraction from petting her.

She loved to have her own chair at the table in the mornings.

She was intense about life.

And serious about sleeping.

She brought me such joy and will be sorely missed.

Red Hot Red Stick Road Trip Entry # 2

This was a common sight during the six days we were actually on the road in Genna's loaded car.

I was often the one to sit in the back seat sharing it with Genna's bicycle, bags, boxes and Phil who stayed at my feet. I really didn't mind so much unless we stopped suddenly ;-) 

Entry Two, family and friends: Lakewood & Boulder, CO, Dallas and Amarillo, TX.

From Rock Springs we drove to Lakewood, CO, where Marty, Carl and Ben were kind enough to host us for the night.

Gen, Ben and Phil.

The next day we made the short drive to Boulder to see the senior Mounts. Due to the constant rain we stayed indoors and amused the family with the t-shirt I had made for this trip.

All too soon it was time to bid family, farewell and continue our journey.

Bob, Ginny and Genna.

We left Boulder quite early to avoid the commute traffic and were hungry as we headed south on highway 25. Once again Yelp came to the rescue and helped us find this spot in Pueblo, CO.

The Daily Grind Cafe was an unexpected gem, very hippy/occult decor, an amazing selection of teas in bulk and killer breakfast burritos. 

We met a young war vet from Alabama as we were leaving. He had fun telling Genna about all the things she would encounter in her move to Cajun country. He admonished us for calling Louisiana "the South". He also mentioned that Genna should be dyeing her hair purple so as not to be confused with LSU rivals the Crimson Tide ;-)

The cloudy weather followed into the corner of New Mexico where we took a side tour to see or try to see this crater. It's hiding under the cloud layer.

Too long in the car or lifetime issue ?

We stopped in the tiny town of Folsom, NM to see their museum about "Folsom Man". This is just the kind of museum that Gina and Frank would enjoy. 

It was full of stuff, more like a yard sale/ second hand store. 

The admission price of $1.25 per person was just about right.

Amarillo was the stopping place for this day's journey, we stayed a Holiday Inn Express. Genna and Phil took a quick nap before we went on a quest for dinner, hoping for some Texas barbecue.

By now you are probably either tired of me mentioning Yelp or convinced I am being paid to do so. Oh well...either way, once again Yelp steered us to a fabulous BBQ place a short ways from our motel.

Rudy's Barbecue, it turns out is a chain all over Texas and a few other states. You walk up to the counter and if you are new they give you samples, which is a very smart marketing technique. We ordered pork ribs, the moist brisket and two sides: cole slaw and Texas BBQ beans. The order came with a pile of "brown" soft bread slices.

This photo doesn't do it justice, it was such good food !!

The meat was tender and juicy and while there were plenty of sauces to choose from I found the meat so flavorful I didn't bother with the sauces. The beans were so smoky and good, not sweet at all. In fact I just made my version which I will post about soon.

As a souvenir we bought Bob this t-shirt. 

The next day our drive was from Amarillo to Dallas.

We found that taking lots of breaks at rest stops was good for our bodies as well as our souls. 

It was a great place to do a little stealth herping.

Look at the cute little lizard Genna found.

It turns out that these buildings at Texas rest stops are used for tornado shelters !!

Gas stations were another chance to stretch our legs, absorb the local culture, let off steam and photograph the local insect population.

Most have "mini market/ fast food" components.

 I am not sure if this really qualifies as food.

Lucky for us our next stop included a home cooked meal. There is story that comes with this stop. Over ten years ago Bob started chatting with a guy online at some financial site they both used. They soon discovered they shared similar ideas and world views. They began a daily correspondence that grew into a friendship beyond the world of stocks and charts. Christmas cards were exchanged, they knew each other's family members by their first names, but had never that the chance to meet in person. When Jin heard that we would be driving through Dallas on our way to Baton Rouge, he kindly invited us to stay with him and his lovely wife, Grace in their home in Richardson, TX. 

What a delightful and affirming experience. Grace cooked us a fabulous meal of pulled pork.

With this amazing whipped cream, fresh fruit and angel food cake trifle to top it off.

Jim took us for a lovely walk around their neighborhood after dinner which was a great way to work off the car sitting and the meal !

Due to our schedule we had to bid these wonderful friend farewell the next morning after Jim cooked us breakfast.

Getting us together for one last  photo, was a bit like herding cats !

Eastern Texas has lots of mesquite and lots of pecans. We stopped at this place to sample the local treats and came away with bags of salty and sweet pecans !!

Looking at the map on the drive toward Louisiana, I noticed the very familiar name of a town just off the highway, Winona, TX. My friend Karen is from Texas and her email name for many years was Winona 2000. I knew that she had owned property in this small town. It seemed like a good place to stop and stretch our legs. I was so surprised that I could recognize her building at first sight. It was so much fun to surprise her with photos sent from my phone !!

Next stop: The Red Stick, Baton Rouge !!

PS: Sorry the layout got messed up a bit. I know what happened but am too lazy to go back and redo the second have.