Easy Baked Beans

I like to eat baked beans (or pork and beans) once in a while, but I always find that they are too sweet for me. My husband, on the other hand, loves sweet baked beans, so I came up with a happy medium. These beans still have that sweet taste from the brown sugar, but the molasses give it an almost smoky flavor and the tomato sauce gives it some tartness. However, if you do like more sweetness on your beans, just add an additional tablespoon of brown sugar to the recipe.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 slices of thick-cut bacon, cut into 1" pieces
• 1 medium red onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 (15oz) cans of white Navy beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 heaping tablespoons molasses
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 (8oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 cup beer, preferably a pale ale or light beer (you can use 1 cup low-sodium chicken stock if you prefer not to use the beer)
• 1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt, or to taste

DIRECTIONS

Heat a large 4-quart pot or dutch oven to medium high. Add the bacon and cook until crispy, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside.

In the same pot, add the diced onions and garlic to the bacon grease and sautee for 2 to 3 minutes or until onions become soft.

Then add the remaining ingredients: white beans, molasses, brown sugar, tomato sauce, beer, salt and pepper and add the crispy bacon bits back to the pot. Bring the beans to a boil then lower heat to a simmer.

Simmer the beans, uncovered, for 20 to 30 minutes, or until they become rich and thick. Serve them immediately with your bangers and mash. The beans will taste even better the next day. Try eating them for breakfast (the Mexican way) with scrambled eggs and tortillas. You will be amazed how good it tastes!