Molasses Flood: Boston Baked Beans and Boston Brown Bread

The Great Boston Molasses Flood happened at this time of year in 1919. I was incredulous when I first heard of it - seemed like such a strange and awful source of disaster (21 people died, drowning in a huge flood of molasses after a storage tank burst in the North End). A friend of ours is having a commemorative party. Not sure if it's something that should be partied about, but I guess it's important not to forget.

I thought of making Boston Brown Bread because I'd been keen to try making it for a while and knew it had molasses in it. Then I started suspecting it wasn't the only regional recipe to involve molasses and I was right - Boston Baked Beans also makes heavy use of molasses, as does Indian Pudding. The Boston-molasses connection, it turns out, is through the Triangle Trade and alcohol production. Apparently slaves were shipped from Africa to South American sugar plantations, then sugar and molasses were shipped to New England to be distilled into rum or other alcohol (hence the huge molasses storage tank and the disaster), then the alcohol (and ice, to make up the weight) was shipped to Europe and elsewhere (including back to Africa, completing the triangle).

Quite a series of connections. I made a Brown Bread and a vegetarian Baked Beans (usually it has salted pork or bacon in it).

Boston Brown Bread

(based on this recipe, although I used the flour mix recommended here and this recipe also looked good)

(I used the in-oven cooking method written out below, as opposed to the stove-top steamer method, due to the fact my coffee can was too tall for my steaming apparatus)

I first came across Boston Brown Bread at P's house in New Hampshire - my friend G and his uncle P are from a big New England Irish family, and P had half a can of brown bread in the fridge left over from a fry-up. I'd never seen anything like it before: bread in a can?! But, bread packed with molasses and wholewheat and raisins - sounds like something I'd love (and similar to a malted tealoaf)!

Butter for greasing loaf pans or coffee cans
1/2 cup (heaping) wholemeal flour
1/2 cup (heaping) rye flour
1/2 cup (heaping) finely ground corn meal (must be finely ground)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 cup molasses (any kind - I used blackstrap)
1 cup buttermilk (I used 1 cup almond milk with 1 tsp cider vinegar)
1 tsp vanilla essence (optional)
1/2 cup raisins (optional)

One metal 6-inch tall by 4-inch diameter coffee can, or a 4x8 loaf pan (used a coffee can)

Heat the oven to 325F and boil a full kettle of water (to do oven steaming method). Or heat oven to 350F (for oven baking method - use loaf tin).

Grease the tin with butter. In a large bowl, mix the wholemeal flour, rye flour, corn meal, baking powder and bicarb, salt and allspice. Add the raisins if using.

In another bowl, mix together the milk and vanilla essence (if using). Whisk in the molasses. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir well with a spoon.

Pour the batter into the tin taking care that the batter not reach higher than 2/3 up the sides of the container.

Oven steaming method:
Cover the tin tightly with foil and tie in place with string. Put the prepared tin into a high-sided oven-proof pan that can hold water up to 1/3 the height of the tin. Pour boiling water into the pan until it reaches 1/3 up the side of the tin. Put the pan into the oven. Steam the bread for at least 2 hours and 15 minutes. Check to see if the bread is done by inserting a skewer (or thin metal knitting needle) into it. If the skewer comes out clean, you're ready. If not, re-cover the tin and cook for up to another 45 minutes (I ended up cooking it for the extra time but I think it would also have been fine earlier).

Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes before putting on a rack. Let the bread cool for 1 hour before turning out of the tin (it turned out quite easily, although the edges were soft from condensation and I wondered if it wasn't done yet, once turned out and fully cooled it was totally good).

Oven baking method:
Put loaf tin in oven (at 350F) and cover the top with a baking tray. Bake for ~45-50 min, until it is coming away from the sides and a skewer comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool in the tin.

This also worked well  in muffin form (I like this form because they're easy to freeze and defrost in portions): I filled four cups down each side of my muffin tin (8 total), and filled the middle cups with water / put an oven dish of water in the bottom of the oven to stop it drying out - this might have been overkill. Bake for ~25 min at 350F.


Slice and eat plain, or toast in a little butter in a frying pan.

This is delicious - rich with irony molasses loveliness; definitely reminiscent of malted loaf, and of course pleasingly can-shaped. Loved the cooking process, even if it did take rather a long time - was really pleased to find an actual empty coffee can of about the right dimensions in my cupboard - it had already been repurposed once to store bulghur wheat, now onto its next life... Also made use of some string, a large steel pan, and a knitting needle.


Boston Baked Beans

(based on this recipe, being the tastiest sounding veggie version I came across... there are an awful lot of variants out there)

The molasses contains lots of sugar and calcium (as well as iron, magnesium and potassium) - apparently these are what allow you to cook the beans for so long without them collapsing.

I have never eaten real Boston baked beans, veggie or otherwise, so don't know what this should turn out like. Still, feels right to eat Boston baked beans at least once while living in Beantown.

1 1/2 cups yellow eyed or navy beans, with water to cover (I used ~ 4 1/2 cups pre-cooked kidney and black-eyed beans)
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar (I used turbinado)
2 tbsp ground mustard (used ground white mustard seeds)
1 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp paprika
2 large onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp sea salt
16 oz tin chopped tomatoes
1/3 cup tomato puree
1/2 cup molasses (used ~1/3 cup blackstrap - was running out of molasses!)
1/4 cup cider vinegar

Heat the oil in a high-sided frying pan and add onion. Cover and fry until softened and starting to brown. Add garlic and salt and cook for a few more minutes. Defrost beans if frozen, then add the beans, tinned tomatoes and tomato puree to the pan and mix.  Mix the brown sugar, mustard, nutmeg and paprika in a small bowl, then add to the pan along with the molasses and mix. Add vinegar last and stir. Cover and put in oven for about 2 1/2 - 3 hours. Check for liquid level, adding a bit of water if mixture is too thick or drying out. Uncover and cook an additional 15 minutes.


Really like the texture of the beans - nice and firm. In general a good balance of spiced, sweet and salty.

Winter Salad II: watermelon radish, edamame, avocado and quinoa

A handed me some CSA veg in a hurry yesterday - I saw these and said 'turnips?' and he replied 'they said watermelon turnips, I don't know what's different about them'. I googled quickly and found they were watermelon radishes, a special variant of daikon. I kind of wished I hadn't peeked, because it would have been a wonderful surprise to cut into one of these unawares... They looked like muddy turnips on the outside, but inside they are a spectacular hot pink with slight rays of white. I can definitely see where the watermelon in the name comes from now!

(nb I think the quinoa, edamame and avocado suggested themselves because of the stories in the news about ingredient origins and S+I having a long ongoing conversation about the ethics of buying things from far-flung places... I guess it made me want to eat them (and we had them all in the house anyway, would be the most unethical thing of all to waste them, right?).)

1 medium watermelon radish
~3/4 cup frozen shelled edamame, defrosted
1/2 an avocado, peeled and roughly chopped
1/4 cup quinoa, cooked til tender, drained and cooled
1-2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
juice of 1 lime
1 tbsp cider vinegar
1/2 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp red chilli flakes
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt

Peel the radish and shave it into thin slices using a peeler or a mandoline. Put in a serving bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients, toss, taste for seasoning and eat.


Also really good, I was on my salad making game last night. I realised when eating it, it's quite reminiscent of this one. Got beetroot to eat up too, perhaps that's on the cards soon...  Only problem with this type of salad is that making thin slices of beetroot or radish is somewhat time-consuming / a pain (sometimes literally).

Winter salad I: kale, horseradish, miso and sesame

Yet another kale salad, I know. I'd actually been craving a bit of kale: having gotten somewhat overwhelmed by it before Christmas this time I was ready. I had a delicious kale and coconut smoothie from Naturewell in Silverlake while in LA, which perhaps awakened the craving...

I wanted a gentler, more digestible kale texture (than raw), so decided to let the kale steam a bit before turning it into salad. We ate a miso-horseradish sauce out the other day which was a great combination and reminded me about my burgeoning horseradish addiction, so that's where the inspiration for the dressing came from. It all seemed to come together really nicely.

1 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
1 bunch of kale, washed and shredded
~10 cherry plum tomatoes, thinly sliced (optional)
1-2 tbsp prepared horseradish
1-2 tbsp white miso
juice of 1/2 a lime
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp white sesame seeds
1 tsp black sesame seeds

Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large lidded frying pan.Add garlic and fry for a minute or two without colouring. Add kale, toss, put the lid on and heat for another minute or two, then switch off the heat and allow to steam with the lid on until tender, then remove the lid.

Meanwhile, prepare the dressing in a serving bowl: mix horseradish, miso, vinegar, lime juice and oils until smooth. When it is ready, add the kale, along with both kinds of sesame seeds and the chopped tomatoes (if using).


Oh yeah, thumbs up, think this was my favourite kale salad yet... or maybe it's not really a salad, just dressed kale, whatever, the spicy-salty-nutty-almost creamy dressing is wildly good.

Cornbread v. 2

I felt like eating cornbread on Friday. Cornbread is great stuff: fills the need for breadlike substance quicker than any other kind of bread. With garlicky spinach and beetroot salad, mmm. I've made cornbread a few times before and was really happy with the results. In my original search I'd found two good-looking recipes, but I'd never got around to trying the second since I liked the first just fine. Thought I'd give the other one a try this time - this one.

Makes 12 to 16 squares
 
2 cups cornmeal
1 cup plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup veg oil
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 cups fake milk
2 tsp cider vinegar
1/2 tsp salt

Heat oven to 350F and grease the bottom of a metal loaf tin lightly with oil.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk and the vinegar and set aside. In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients (cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt). Add the oil and maple syrup to the milk mixture. Whisk with a fork until it is foamy and bubbly, about 2 minutes. Pour the wet ingredient into the dry and mix together. Pour batter into the prepared baking pan and bake 30-35 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Slice into squares and serve warm or store in an airtight container (can also freeze slices and toast as required.


This one was fine but I think I liked the other one better - perhaps I prefer sugar over maple syrup (felt like you could taste it a little, wasn't sure about that), perhaps I like having linseed in it, perhaps I like it slightly saltier and sugarier... Not sure, both are fine, but think I'll stick with the other one as default.

Earl Grey Marmalade and Dark Marmalade

Left: Dark marmalade; Right: Earl Grey marmalade

Realised it is marmalade orange season. It's such a short season, and they are hard to find - I guess not many people here are making marmalade. I don't know what else you can make with them - they are too bitter for most things. As soon as I realised it is time (season is basically January and that's it) I wanted to hunt for them.

We found them in Arax Market in Watertown today. So then I had to make marmalade. I had nearly 3 lb of oranges, so decided to try two variants. One (the dark marmalade) is direct from my AFRC Institute of Food Research 'Home Preservation of Fruits and Vegetables' book (first published in 1929; basically the preserving Bible; it's out of print but Grandma found me a copy when I first started jamming). The other (the tea marmalade) just occurred to me as I was assembling the ingredients: it seemed like it should work.

Below is the basic marmalade recipe. You can make it pure without additions for the traditional deal, or add either tea or molasses for my two variants.

Note: if you can't get hold of Seville oranges; lemons, limes and grapefruit (or some combination of citrus fruit) all make good marmalade - but don't use sweet oranges alone, they lack the sharpness you need.

(makes 4 jars)

600g Seville oranges (approx. 4 medium ones)
1/2 tsp citric acid (or add one lemon along with the oranges)
~1.3 litres water
1.2 kg sugar
for dark marmalade: 2-3 tsp molasses
for tea marmalade: 1 Earl Grey teabag (if doing again, use 2 or more teabags: the flavour was lost with only one)

Wash the oranges thoroughly. Chop into quarters. Cut out the pulp. Squeeze the juice into the pan. Put the remaining pulp and seeds into a muslin square in a colander over a bowl. Repeat for all the quarters of all the oranges. Then thinly slice the rind pieces (do not remove pith) and add them to the pan. Tie up the muslin with all the pulp and seeds in it into a tight bundle, then add it to the pan. Add the water and citric acid (and teabag if using). Bring to the boil and simmer, covered, for 2 hours or until the rind pieces are soft.

Remove the muslin bag and squeeze it between two plates to get as much liquid back into the pan as you can, then discard the contents. Also remove the teabag if using. Add the sugar (and molasses if using) and stir while dissolving / coming to the boil. Boil hard (taking care to check it is not sticking to the bottom of the pan) until setting point is reached.

Let stand for ~30 min before putting in sterilised jars. If you jar it too soon the rind pieces will rise towards the tops of the jars and there will be an inch or two of rindless jelly at the bottom - not the end of the world, but not as pretty as if it is evenly dispersed. I am often too impatient so I know exactly what this looks like.


Both set beautifully. The dark one is especially beautiful and delicious. You can't really taste the tea - should have used more teabags (or used strong brewed tea instead of water)... Although it is still lovely as plain Seville marmalade.

Colourful, robust winter salads

We ended up eating at / from Whole Foods quite a lot while we were out West. It was S's idea. We arrived in Vegas and had one very uninspired meal with awful service, and then he had the idea of looking for local Whole Foods (apparently his buddy who runs learning-to-play-poker courses there stocks up at Whole Foods before getting going on the poker). We found a huge one in Henderson, and that was us sorted for the next few days.

A recurring Whole Foods salad theme was mixed grains and pulses. Which put me in the mood for more on our return. Here are a couple of variants:


Giant couscous, lentils, rice, cranberries and pumpkin seeds

3/4 cup giant / Israeli couscous, cooked in 1 cup water with 1/4 tsp turmeric for colour
1/2 cup brown and/or wild rice, cooked in 1 cup water
3/4 cup brown lentils, cooked in 1 1/2 cups veg stock with a bay leaf
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted
~8 salty black olives, chopped
~2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
olive oil
red wine vinegar
salt+pepper
wholegrain mustard
maple syrup

Mix olive oil, vinegar, mustard, maple syrup and seasoning in a medium bowl to make the dressing. Add the cooked, cooled couscous, rice and lentils and toss. Add the cranberries, pumpkin seeds, olives and coriander and mix up again. Taste to check seasoning / that there is enough dressing.


Massive couscous (moghrabieh), chickpeas, beetroot and sesame

3/4 cup moghrabieh, cooked in 1 cup water with 1/2 tsp turmeric for colour
1 cup chickpeas, cooked and defrosted
2-3 medium beetroot, boiled until tender, cooled and diced into ~1 cm dice
~2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
1 tsp white sesame seeds
1 tsp black sesame seeds
1/2 tsp nigella seeds
juice of 1/2 lime
olive oil
red wine vinegar
salt+pepper

Put the pre-cooked and cooled couscous, chickpeas and chopped beetroot in a bowl, add the seeds and coriander and toss. Then add the dressing ingredients: oil, vinegar, lime juice, salt+pepper, quantities to taste (use plenty), toss and eat.

Simple celeriac

Wanted a straightforward, easy way of doing celeriac. Celeriac goes great with garlic and thyme, so that was that. Would be good on its own, or with other herbs, though.

1 medium celeriac, peeled and chopped into 1cm dice
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1 tsp dried thyme (or fresh, if available)
salt+pepper
2 tbsp olive oil

Heat oil in a lidded saucepan. Add garlic, thyme and celeriac and toss. Cover and cook for ~25 min, or until celeriac is tender. Season to taste and cook uncovered for ~5 more minutes.


This was quite successful. We both liked it and it was nice and low maintenance.

Note: also works well with a mix of carrot and celeriac, or just carrots, or parsnips (add cumin as well as thyme).