One of our favorite restaurant accounts is Luna Mexican Kitchen, with several branches all south of San Francisco. We're waiting for a Napa location, but until then, we have this great recipe to tide us over. We're thankful to Lou Bustamante, who has been doing some guest writing for us, for reaching out to them and compiling this piece.

The first thing you notice when walking into Luna Mexican Kitchen is the aroma of fresh hand-pressed tortillas cooking on a hot griddle. The steamy scent of ground corn discs plumping up and breathing out tiny clouds saturates the entirety of the restaurant.

That smell is something that connects chef-owner Jo Lerma-Lopez with her family traditions.

“It's just the most wonderful smell, and that takes me to a place of comfort and happiness,” says Lerma-Lopez who thinks about Luna Mexican Kitchen as a farm-to-table restaurant. “We're not reinventing the wheel; we're honoring the traditions of our ancestors.”

The restaurant concept is to share family culture, passion for local ingredients, and make impact on the community on a larger scale by sourcing clean ingredients with integrity. That includes another Mexican staple: a pot of beans.

“In our little way we want to make an impact on our food system by supporting farmers and producers who are passionate and doing the right thing,” says Lerma-Lopez. “We want to support that, and we want to be a part of that sustainability. Good ingredients just make everything taste better.”

• 2 cups dry Rancho Gordo Pinto beans (1 pound)
• ½ yellow onion, quartered
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled
• Salt to taste
• 1 cup diced bacon
• 1 cup fresh Mexican chorizo
• 1 cup diced ham
• 5 jalapeño chiles, diced
• 4 Roma tomatoes, diced
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 cup chopped cilantro

Serves 4 to 6

1. Place beans in a strainer and rinse thoroughly under running cold water.
2. In a large stockpot, clay pot, or Dutch oven, combine the rinsed beans with 8 cups of water (or enough to cover beans by 2 inches), one-half of an onion (quartered), and 3 garlic cloves. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer the beans, almost completely covered, for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Add 1 teaspoon of salt towards the end of cooking.
3. While the beans are cooking, in a large pan over medium heat, cook the bacon until cooked through but soft, about 5 minutes. Add the chorizo and ham and cook together for another 5 to 7 minutes.
4. Add the jalapeños, tomatoes, and remaining whole yellow onion, diced, to the meat mixture and sauté, stirring regularly, until the onions are translucent. Add the black pepper and cumin, mix well, then transfer the entire mixture into the pot of beans.
5. Add 2 more cups of boiling water to the beans. Continue to simmer over medium-low heat for about 2 more hours, covering the pot slightly askew to allow a little steam to vent from the top. Stir and check the beans periodically, ensuring enough liquid to maintain a soupy consistency. Beans are done when tender and creamy. Add half a cup of chopped cilantro during the last 30 minutes of cooking, and add additional salt to taste.
6. Serve as a side in a small soup bowl with plenty of caldo (bean broth) and top it with fresh cilantro.

Written by Lou Bustamante. Photograph and recipe contributed by Luna Mexican Kitchen.