BEANS

      I am going to take a moment here to expound on a non political subject.  This is so I can clear my head of the obnoxious messages from people who say that I must stand behind our newly elected president regardless of my values.  So rather than fence with an unarmed opponent I must tell you about BEANS.
      I go to a lot of cover dish suppers and church suppers and many other functions.  There seems to be an almost unconscious tendency, especially for men, to open and dump out cans of pork and beans and do nothing with them.  It is really frustrating when the other dishes have been obviously made with care and handed down tradition.  Then there is the bean right from the can.
      Come on people, beans from the can are a basic ingredient.  Very few people I know relish canned beans straight.  It is not hard to create a great dish with a little effort.  Even the baked beans are not serve worthy without a little care.
       And there is the few who think they are creating a gastronomical delight by adding hamburger to unseasoned beans. UCK!  Really?
     Now am I being a country food snob?  Maybe.  My specialty is beans and I have fixed them for many functions with great success.  Now beans was a stable on the cattle trails and though the chuck wagon cooks of today provide some delectable fare, back in the old days the food was terrible.
      Now I will not give you my recipe but I will give you some guidelines.
There needs to be bacon and onions.  There has to be just a little ketchup but not a bunch.  It takes a little bite and a little sweet.  Now I don't measure like a real foo foo recipe card type plan, I dunk and dab.
       You know there are a lot of great country cooks still around and the worst thing I think you can do to a crowd that is lickin their chops over a great meal is to insult them with plain beans.
      This may cause a stir in a couple of church basements but there are a couple of unnamed congregations that should order out.  Now don't get on me I have had many great meals done by church ladies.  But there are a few.
      So the next time you are going to have a feed of some kind and the urge to dump beans straight from the can hits you, STOP.  I might have to resort to naming names.