Worth Waiting For Baked Beans

• 1 pound dried navy beans
• 2 teaspoons unsalted butter
• 1 clove garlic -- crushed
• 1 cup onion -- finely chopped
• 3 strips bacon -- cooked&crumbled
• 3 strips bacon -- uncooked
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
• 4 tablespoons molasses
• 5 tablespoons chili sauce
• 1 tablespoon dry mustard -- English
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 cup dark rum
• 1 1/2 cups tomato juice -- or more as needed

Place beans in large pot of boiling water over high heat. Return to boiling. Turn off heat; let stand 1 hour. Preheat oven to very slow (275F). Grease 1 3/4 quart bean pot or casserole with the butter. Rub with garlic. Drain beans. Place in large mixing bowl. Add onion, crumbled bacon, brown sugar, Worcestershire, molasses, chili sauce, dry mustard, curry powder, salt and rum. Mix well. Stir in 1/4 cup of the tomato juice. Transfer to prepared bean pot. Place uncooked bacon strips on top. Bake, covered in a 275F oven for 7 hours or until beans are tender, gently stirring in additional tomato juice as liquid is absorbed by beans.
Serves 6.
Recipe from The Little Mountain Bean Bible Cookbook