European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 02, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Beans Plain or fancy they re the oat bran of the 90s by Jean Thwaite Cox news services at bran move Over. Beneficial Beans Are just As healthy As you Are and much More versatile in cooking one of the earliest cultivated crops Beans were in the business of improving diets As Early As 600 by. Nowadays they Are touted As a smart step toward a heart healthy diet because they Are High in soluble fiber and Are believed to sweep the arteries Clear of cholesterol studies by or. James w. Anderson at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in Lexington have shown that eating 3 /2 ounces of cooked dry Beans a Day can help lower total cholesterol by As much As 19 percent lower Bdl cholesterol the bad Guys by As much As 24 percent and preserve Hal cholesterol the Good Guys. Anderson said eating 8 ounces of canned Beans daily can help lower total cholesterol by As much As 10 percent Beans Are also Rich in b vitamins niacin and Foch acid and High in vegetable protein. Most Beans originated in the Middle East and Asia and were brought to the United states by nomadic tribes crossing the Bering Straits to Alaska. Today the . Bean business is booming Beans classified As legumes Are grown commercially in 14 of our 50 Stales. Versatile Beans Are particularly popular in dips soups and salads but occasionally can be turned into a Hearty main dish such As Boston baked Beans or California cassoulet. The Boston Beans were traditionally served with Brown bread on saturday night and reheated on sunday because working on the Sabbath was against religious practices. The source of the recipe for the baked Beans that follows is Durga Park restaurant in Boston. Gail Perry food editor of the Boston Globe said ii is just about As authentic As you can get and the restaurant s reputation for serving baked Beans goes Way Back. More people Are preparing them today than they were 20 years ago but most of the people that i know Are using by baked Beans and doctoring them up with Mustard a Little onion or  the California cassoulet recipe can be found in a new Cookbook Best recipes from the los Angeles times edited by the paper s food editor Betsy Balsley Balsley wrote this California version of the classic French bean Duck and sausage casserole has drawn hundreds of repeat requests Over the years. This is one of those casseroles that requires a crowd to do it Justice As it simply does t reduce  one of the most popular bean dishes a kind of everybody dish is three bean salad. It can be found on cafeteria lines at covered dish suppers at barbecues or silting in the Ridge waiting to be eaten. This version is from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Boston baked Beans 1 Pound of dried pea Beans Small Navy Beans 12 cups cold water 2 Teaspoons Salt i Pound Salt pork 1 medium whole onion 4 Tablespoons Brown sugar i cup dark molasses 1 Teaspoon dry Mustard it Teaspoon additional Salt 1.7 a. 1.4 1.4 0.8os 0.7 05"" 6.1"" source . S4s Sharon is Day Page 16 the stars and stripes Friday february 2,1990