Super Good Baked Beans

I decided that I should add this recipe as well.  My mom, also made really yummy baked beans.  I loved them but maybe not as much as I love baked beans now.  A few years back, our family, along with my parents, made a cross country trip from Kansas City, to Williamsburg, to Maine, across New Hampshire and Vermont, stopped in Illinois and back to KC.  Long story, short, we ate a a place in KC called Zarda BBQ and I fell in love with their beans.  I have tried to recreate the taste.  Not sure if I have done that or not but I like the beans.  So here is a basic version of my mother's recipe, tweeked a bit.  After I share this recipe, I will also tell you how I do the short-cut but still really good version.
So, here goes!

First cook up some good old bacon (sorry I don't have a picture of the bacon cooking) I have decided that bacon is one of those things that I really never want to have to give up.  I love everything about bacon. Anyway, cook up your bacon til crispy and then crumble into piece.

Once again, I use onion.  I really love onions and cook with them a lot! Add some onion and some green pepper to about 2 Tbls. bacon grease.  Saute them until the onion starts to look translucent.

Add 2 cans of pork and beans that have been drained a bit (I don't love them too runny so I just squeeze out some of the tomato sauce that comes on them) and remove the fat pieces from the top of the beans.   Add the ketchup, brown sugar, molasses, dry mustard and worchestershire (how do YOU say that "W" word?) the liquid smoke and the hot sauce if you want hot sauce in your beans.  That is optional.  Mix all together!

Add the bacon.  I tend to use a lot of bacon because I love the meatiness and flavor it gives the beans.
Mix together and pour into a casserole dish. Cover with foil and bake at 350* until they are hot and bubbly.  Serve.  These are so good.

If you like the flavor of these, here is a little secret.  You can make just the sauce without the beans, onion, pepper and bacon and use it as BBQ sauce with pulled pork.  I do it all the time and my family loves it.  I serve it warm and it is so so so good!!!

So here is a picture of our 4th of July picnic.  The beans with that potato salad and a burger- WOW!!! Yummy!

Baked Beans

Cook 6 slices of bacon until crispy (more if you like :)) crumble when cooled

2 cans pork and beans, drained
1/4 cup chopped onion
3 Tbls. chopped green pepper
2 Tbls. bacon grease

Saute until onion starts to look translucent.  Add:

1/8 cup +1 Tbls. dark molasses
3/4 c ketchup
2 Tbls. Worchestershire sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 tsp. dry mustard
1/4 tsp. liquid smoke (more if you like them a little more smokey)
1/2 tsp. Franks Red Hot or your favorite hot sauce (opt)

Mix all together and add the crumbled bacon.  Pour into a sprayed (for easier clean up) casserole dish and cover with foil.  Bake at 350* until bubbly and hot.  Serve!


So I told you there is a short cut version too.  So here goes!  Again, remember I don't measure! This is usually how I roll.

I use the 2 cans of pork and beans or more if I'm going for a larger crowd.  I do use the bacon and I do saute the onion and green pepper in the bacon grease.  Then I start dumping in ketchup, hickory flavored bbq sauce, a splash of worchestershire sauce, some brown sugar to taste-(and I do taste and add more until I like the flavor) and the liquid smoke.  It works. It's yummy and there you go.  I maybe even like the throw together a little more. It's almost the same amount of work but it's pretty dang good too!  Good Luck!!!!