Rancho Gordo Heirloom Beans

The menu for Thanksgiving is finished.
The menus for the first set of houseguests (next week) is finished.
The menus for the second set of houseguests is finished.
The menu for the Tree Trimming party is finished.
I've made all the shopping lists.
I have no more words in me.
Blog entry is beyond my little brain.

For dinner I made Rancho Gordo's black beans, called Midnight beans. They were really delicious. Here's my sure fire method for cooking beans, requiring absolutely no soaking. If you have a slow cooker, it's even easier.

Rinse dried beans in a lot of cold water.
In a large stockpot, add rinsed beans, one medium onion, chopped, one tablespoon butter.
Pour boiling water over the beans to cover by about 2". Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer until done. White beans take about 1.5 hours. Black beans take about 3 hours. But the amount of time is directly related to the freshness of the bean. Salt the beans, to taste, about 30 minutes before they are done.

Beans can be frozen in ziplock bags.