Larry's Baked Beans
(They aren't as complicated to make as it looks. I just wanted to be thorough.)
Time:
Assemble: 30 minutes
Holding: 3-18 hours
Bake: 3 hours
Ingredients
1 32oz can Pork and Beans ( or 2 16oz cans)
1 12oz can Kidney Beans, drained
1 12oz can Butter Beans, drained
2 T Prepared yellow mustard
2 T Vinegar
½ C Brown Sugar (Light preferred, but dark is ok, too)
¼ C Green Pepper, ½ dice
1 14oz Bottle Ketchup
1 12-16oz package Pre-cooked Bacon
Utensils
Large bowl to mix everything
Rubber or Silicone spatula
2-Quart Casserole
Rimmed baking sheet
Can Opener
Measuring Spoons
Measuring Cup for Liquids
Pre-Cook the Bacon
Why pre-cook the bacon? Simple. Too much fat. Even very lean bacon has quite a bit of fat in it..This extra fat can make the beans greasy and soupy. Everyone has their preferred way to cook bacon. Here's one way. Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees. Line the baking sheet with parchment. Make sure the parchment is long enough so that you can make a pour spout later. Separate the strips and lay them on the parchment. It's ok if they overlap a bit. Place the pan in the oven and cook the bacon until crisp.
Once the bacon is done, carefully remove the pan from the oven. If you save the bacon fat to cook with, make a spout in a corner of the parchment and pour the hot fat into a suitable pan or jar for later use. If you don't re-use the fat, pour it into one of the empty cans from the beans. Place the bacon on paper towels to drain and cool.
Assembly
While the bacon is cooking, open and drain the beans. Pour beans into mixing bowl. Add mustard, vinegar and brown sugar. Measure out ¾ cup of ketchup plus 2 tablespoons. Add to mixing bowl. Dice green pepper and add ¼ cup to beans.
Once the bacon has cooled, break it up into roughly ½ inch pieces and add to beans. Mix everything very thoroughly.
Hold and Baking Time
Ideally, the beans are mixed the day before and allowed to sit in the refrigerator over night to allow the flavors to meld before baking. If you don't have that kind of time, allow the mix to sit, covered, on the counter for a few hours.
Pre-heat the oven to 300 degrees.
Pour bean mixture into casserole and bake for 3 hours. DO NOT stir beans at any time! It will be tempting to stir the beans while baking or after removing from the oven. Resist all temptation. Check the beans after 3 hours. If they still look watery, leave them in a while longer. They should be nice and thick.
Serving
The beans may be served hot, warm, room-temperature or cold. This makes them an ideal travel dish for parties or picnics.
