Baked Beans ~ Perfect 4th Fare!

I’ve hardly met a bean I don't like ~ these old-fashioned beans are my favorite!

I posted this recipe not long after this blog started, and thought it deserved to be repeated.   I have no idea of the origin of the original recipe; it was tweaked way back when, and I’ve been making it for many years.  It always serves us well.  Bill and Bubba swear I make the best-baked beans in the world, and I concur.    ☺

Bubba, 1971, almost 3!

Unlike the usual baked bean recipes, these beans do not need to soak overnight.  Simply use store-brand canned pork and beans (I toss the pork part) and let all the ingredients in the recipe do the flavoring.  

Don’t be afraid of the molasses, baked beans aren’t baked beans without it!  Dry mustard and vinegar provide a little kick and brown sugar sweetens it all up; chopped onions are a must, and crisp-fried bacon, just because…

Stir it up...

Mom's trusty old bean pot still in use today

This is truly our absolute favorite baked beans ~ I’ve been making this recipe many more years than I care to admit!

These baked beans go with about anything, and should you have a slice of cornbread slathered with butter to join it; you’re the lucky one.

Perfect 4^th of July fare, it will be on our table that day for sure! 

Baked Beans, My Way
Printable recipe

Ingredients: 
½ pound bacon
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon dry mustard
½ cup molasses
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 medium white onion, chopped
4 (16-ounce) cans pork and beans

Method: 
Fry bacon crisp, crumble and set aside.
Pour beans into a large bowl.
Add half of the bacon.
Add the remaining ingredients, one by one, stirring well after each addition.
Pour into a bean pot or casserole dish.
Top with remainder of bacon.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 3 hours. It will be thickened and bubbly.
Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

By the way, I don’t know about where you are, but we had downpours and high winds; severe storms, off and on this morning from 12:30 a.m. through 4:00 a.m., with a tornado warning and a funnel cloud touching down in the next town.  Luckily, very little damage, but it made for a sleepless night! 

More severe weather predicted for this afternoon…