Sassy, spicy, smoky baked beans

The inspiration to make ribs with all the fixin's hit me on a beautiful sunny day. I could almost taste the smoky ribs, baked beans and cole slaw as we sat on the deck watching the sun set. Of course, the day I decided to make this meal turned out gray, rainy, and 50 degrees. Oh well, it tasted good in the kitchen, too.

I love smoky food. Smoked paprika is my favorite spice; one of my favorite kitchen gadgets is my Cameron's stovetop smoker. I like to heat things up with smoky chipotles in adobo... the list goes on. When I make ribs, it's an all day process (most of it hands-off)- they're rubbed, smoked, basted, slow-cooked, basted again, and finally grilled. Perfect with cole slaw or potato salad, we have them several times each summer.This time, I went with cole slaw - it's easier than potato salad. So, for a starch, I decided to make a batch of smoky baked beans. This recipe is based on one I found in Steven Raichlen's Barbecue Bible. It calls for canned beans, which makes them really quick and easy.

Give them a try at your next BBQ - they go great with my smoked ribs.



Sassy, spicy, smoky baked beans
adapted from the Barbecue! Bible

3 slices thick-cut bacon
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. fresh grated ginger
1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup barbecue sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp. dry mustard
1 Tbsp. prepared mustard
1 Tbsp. cider vinegar
1 Tbsp. smoked Spanish paprika
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)
2 cans kidney, cannellini or Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
Salt and pepper to taste



Preheat oven to 350F.

In a frying pan, cook the bacon. Drain on paper towels. Discard all but 1 Tbsp. of the drippings from the pan. Saute the onion, garlic, and ginger in the pan until softened, about 5 minutes.

When the bacon is cool, coarsely chop it.

In a round baking dish, whisk together the brown sugar, molasses, barbecue sauce, ketchup, Worcestershire, dry mustard, prepared mustard, vinegar, paprika and cayenne. Stir in the bacon and the onion mixture. Stir in the beans. Add salt and papper to taste.

Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Stir then continue baking for about 30 minutes more, uncovered.