Frank-less Beans

I love squash. I know I went on about it in a previous post, but really. It’s just awesome. It’s sweet, it’s savory, it last forever, its easy to prepare. I can’t get enough of it. Which is fortunate because I have two beautiful ones on my table night now. One is a Long Island Cheese that I got in our CSA today. Have I mentioned how much I love our CSA? I got a seven pound squash from them today and I was so excited they took my picture with it. The other one is a bit of a mystery and may need a photo to help identify it. The skin is a dusky green-blue and it’s probably 4 pounds with really deep ridges. It kind of looks like the Australian Blue Pumpkin. Either way, it’ll be delicious stuffed!

The other more recent squash was a kabocha. They are my favorite, the little ones are perfect to split for dinner. I split this one, scraped out the seeds, put cut side down on a baking sheet and roasted at 375 while I baked focaccia bread. When it was done I let it sit for a while and the rind sort of steams off and can be pulled away. I ate a quarter of it with my frankenbeans and then had more later for dessert with maple syrup and cinnamon.

Those frankenbeans are a frank/hot dog-less version of the recipe in Please Don’t Feed the Bears. If you don’t have that yet you should really get it. It’s awesome and hilarious. Not always the lowest calories since more than half the recipes rely on peanut butter, pasta, or potatoes, but everything I’ve had from it has been great. Because it can be a little hard to navigate I tend to find lots of recipes that seem new and require a bookmark. I love just leafing through it until something jumps out. When I was roasting my squash I wanted some sort of beans to go with it and needing something sweet and saucy I knew Bears would have something for me. I didn’t have everything the recipe called for and added a few things of my own.

Frank-less Beans Inspired by PDFT Bears
1 tbsp. oil
1 onion, finely diced
1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 c. ketchup
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. molasses
1 tbsp. maple syrup
2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp. mustard powder
1 tsp. granulated garlic
dash of liquid smoke

Saute the onion in oil. When it starts to brown add the rest of the ingredients and a little water, let simmer until thick.