This coming Saturday will be our big family get-together. I’ve been called upon to provide the baked beans. This isn’t an unusual request. It’s what I provide every year, but for some reason my sister feels compelled to ask me again each time. That’s ok, though. She’s not a person who assumes anything, even when it comes to baked beans!

When I make them, I don’t actually “bake” them, though. I cook them on top of the stove, in an electric skillet, or in the crock pot. They still cook for a very long time, so the beans are infused with the wonderful richness of the ingredients added to them. What follows is my own personal recipe for making baked beans. This uses a #10 can of pork & beans as the base, so you can divide the recipe to suit your own needs. I make it for a crowd!

Ingredients:

  • #10 can Showboat pork & beans (the ONLY brand I use)
  • 1 pound bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 large bell pepper, diced
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 2 cups packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Fry the bacon until crispy. Remove from skillet. Add bell pepper and onions to the bacon grease and sweat them. Do NOT drain the fat off.

In a large pot, large electric skillet, or the crock pot, mix together all the ingredients until the brown sugar is thoroughly mixed in. It takes a couple of minutes to make sure there aren’t any lumps left.

Cook slowly over low heat on the stove or in the electric skillet, or for 8 hours in the crock pot. Serve piping hot!

I don’t know how many servings this makes, although on the #10 can the number of servings is listed as twenty four 1/2 cup servings. I also can’t give you any nutritional information because 1.) I’m too lazy to figure it out and 2.) It’s a picnic with baked beans so who cares?! :-)

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