Las Brisas Shares Recipe for Tasty Chorizo Beans

DEAR SOS: Las Brisas restaurant in Laguna Beach has well-prepared Mexican-style cuisine, and the chorizo beans, which are similar to refried beans, are especially good. They are smoky in flavor and taste unlike any beans I’ve ever had. Do you think the restaurant would part with the recipe?

--ANITA

DEAR ANITA: Yes, they would. The trick to these unusual beans is that chorizo, a Mexican sausage, is sauteed and added to the beans along with the pan drippings. About 40% of the beans are mashed for use as refried beans. The cheese-topped beans are good by themselves and as an accompaniment to roasts, hamburgers and other meats and poultry.

LAS BRISAS CHORIZO

BEANS

8 ounces dried pinto beans

1/4 cup finely diced white onion

1 clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon shortening

2 1/2 ounces chorizo, casing removed

2 ounces shredded Jack cheese

Cover beans with cold water and add diced onion. Bring to rolling boil over high heat.

Reduce heat and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally and adding more water as necessary until beans are cooked, about 2 hours. (Beans should mash easily when pressed between fingers and water level should be just below beans.)

Stir in garlic and salt. Bring back to simmer over medium heat and simmer 5 minutes.

Melt shortening in separate skillet. Add chorizo and saute until fully cooked. Add to beans with drippings. Stir well and allow to simmer slowly 15 minutes with lid ajar.

Taste to adjust for seasonings. Using potato masher, mash 40% of beans. Prior to serving, sprinkle top of beans with shredded cheese. Makes about 3 1/4 cups, or 6 servings.

DEAR SOS: I would like to have a recipe for cookies that I won’t have to bake. Can you help?

--READER

DEAR READER: Certainly. The recipe for these no-bake cookies was contributed by Barb Egbert and appeared in The Times’ Food Section My Best Recipe column in 1978.

NO-BAKE MUNCHIES

3 cups oats

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup carob powder

1 teaspoon vanilla

Few drops peppermint extract

3/4 cup honey

1/4 cup butter or margarine

Combine oats, peanut butter, carob powder, vanilla and peppermint in large bowl. Toss well.

Combine honey and butter in saucepan and boil 1 minute. Add to oat mixture and stir until blended.

Drop by rounded teaspoons onto tray or baking sheet lined with wax paper. Chill until firm. Makes about 4 dozen.

Note: If desired, amount of rolled oats may be reduced and replaced with sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, coconut, nuts, raisins or chopped dates.

DEAR SOS: Easter is around the corner and I would like a recipe for presliced honey-baked ham, like the commercial type.

--HENRIETTA

DEAR HENRIETTA: A reader provided us with a recipe for homemade presliced baked ham in 1985 and we have printed the recipe regularly since.

LAURA’S HONEY HAM

1 (about 7 pounds) medium smoked pork picnic shoulder

2 cups sugar

1 cup honey or brown sugar, packed

1 (6-ounce) can frozen orange juice, thawed

1 teaspoon whole cloves

Make crosswise slits, 1/2-inch apart, halfway through ham to where knife touches bone. Place ham in deep bowl and barely cover with water. Stir in sugar. Soak at least 2 days in refrigerator.

Drain. Place pork in roasting pan lined with enough foil to wrap completely. Pour honey and orange juice all over pork. Stud cloves all over meat. Wrap tightly with foil. Bake at 200 degrees 6 to 7 hours, unwrapping and basting occasionally with honey mixture.

Unwrap and bake at 450 degrees about 15 minutes for slightly crisp skin. Makes about 8 servings.

Only recipes of general interest will be printed. We are unable to answer all requests. Please include restaurant address when requesting recipes from restaurants. Send your letter with self-addressed, stamped envelope to Culinary SOS, Food Section, The Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles 90053.