Picnics mean Sweet & Spicy Baked Beans. These beans bring sweet and spicy together in a pleasing simmer for summer.
Sweet & Spicy Baked Beans
- 1 pound kidney beans (can also use black beans, red beans, etc. if you’d like a variety)
- 1/2 pound bacon, diced
- 32 ounces vegetable, beef, or chicken broth
- 1 Walla Walla sweet onion, diced
- 8 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups apple juice
- 1 – 12 ounce can of tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup molasses
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 minced jalapeno (optional)
- Sea salt
- Coarse ground pepper
- Water if needed
Rinse the beans and remove any that look bad. Place them in a pot & cover with 1-2 inches of water. Bring to a boil, then turn off the heat and let them soak for overnight or 8-12 hours.
Fry bacon in a large, shallow pot – one that’s oven safe. Cast iron or a braising pan works great for this.
Drain the beans and put them back into the pot. Add the broth. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for an hour.
After the beans are done cooking on the stovetop, preheat the oven to 300°F.
When bacon is fully cooked, take it out of the pan and place it on a plate lined with a couple of paper towels to drain. Set aside. Drain excess grease from the pan.
Fry the onion in the same bacon pan until translucent. Mince garlic, then add. Cook for about a minute longer, reduce heat to medium-low, and carefullyadd apple juice.
Gently stir in the beans and one cup of the broth they were cooked in. Add tomato paste and apple cider vinegar. Stir in molasses and brown sugar.
Add the cooked bacon. Welcome back to the party, bacon.
If you’d like to spice things up, add jalapeno. Salt & pepper to taste.
Cover with a lid or foil and bake in the preheated oven for about 1 1/2 hours. Remove foil or lid and cook for another 30 minutes. Serve hot.
