The Traveling Epicurean

Best Baked Beans! – Show 101

Best Baked Beans! – Show 101

Every time there’s a get together in my neighborhood the first thing that comes to mind, “I hope Linda brings her baked beans!” That’s how good these baked beans are! My friend and neighbor, Linda, graciously offered up her recipe so that I may share it with all of you. Linda titles the recipe “Sue’s Baked Beans” because she got the recipe from her sister Sue who got the recipe from their mom! No matter what the title it’s one great family recipe.

Just the thought of bacon, sauteéd onions and creamy beans and you’ve got my attention. These are a few of the ingredients that go into this Best Baked Beans recipe. Other key ingredients are brown sugar, honey mustard, garlic granules, and to balance out the whole dish  apple cider vinegar, of course.

It’s really fairly simple especially since the recipe calls for canned beans. Shhhh …no one has to know that, lol! These beans, in my opinion, taste like they are made from scratch. Our time is very valuable and if you can make baked beans that taste like this you’re one step ahead of the game. These best beaked beans are creamy, flavorful, and a wonderful balance between sweet and tangy making a great addition to grilled fish, chicken, pulled pork or sausages. These will become your go to baked bean recipe once you taste them!

For some other fun BBQ ideas, Homemade BBQ Sauce, Grilled-Marinated Steak on Skewers, Seared Sea Scallops or Stout Braised Pulled Beef Short Ribs and don’t forget to end the meal with some Homemade Hersheys Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate Cake topped with GHOST Peeps!

 

 

Ingredients:

  • Bush Beans – Vegetarian (large can undrained)
  • Black beans- 15 oz. can (drained and rinsed)
  • Kidney beans – 15 oz. can (drained and rinsed)
  • Butter beans – 15 oz. can (drained and rinsed)
  • Cannelloni beans – 15 oz. can (drained and rinsed)
  • Bacon – 8 slices Boars Head
  • 2 to 3 onions (chopped)
  • ½ cup cider vinegar (add more if you like tangy vs. sweet)
  • 2 to 3 tbls. honey mustard
  • ¾ cup brown sugar
  • ½ tsp. garlic powder
  • Ground pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Add the 5 cans of beans to a large mixing bowl
  2. Cook bacon in skillet until crisp, drain on paper towels and then crumble into small pieces–save 2 tbls grease
  3. In the same skillet cook chopped onions in the 2 tbls bacon grease until soft
  4. Then add in the crumbled bacon, cider vinegar, brown sugar, honey mustard, garlic powder, and ground pepper and simmer for 10-15 minutes
  5. Pour this mixture over beans and mix well.
  6. Pour into baking crock or dish and bake at 350 degrees for one hour….delicious!

 

 

 

CT Style With Ryan & Sarah Making German Pancakes!

CT Style With Ryan & Sarah Making German Pancakes!

I had a blast today on CT Stlye with Ryan Kristafer and Sarah Cody making German Pancakes. It was so nice to meet Sarah and with Ryan’s fun sense of humor I thought it would be a good idea to bring some Halloween props to the set today. Being so involved in what I was cooking I almost forgot I had these props on the shelf behind me. Leave it to Ryan to see the plastic bloody hand and the laughs carried on!

Fall is such an incredibly exciting season. The aroma’s of the season are enticing for sure. People begin to get into a nesting faze and the baking begins. I love having family and guests over for the holidays and these German Pancakes have always been a big hit. I was turned on to German pancakes some 20 years ago by my Vermont friends and have been making them ever since.

My son loves to eat the German pancakes with maple syrup where as my daughter likes them with butter. I on the other hand like them with jam, berries and maple syrup.  That’s why I show you how to make a quick strawberry jam.

This quick jam is so simple, it’s worry free. You make the strawberry jam in 15 minutes while the German pancake is in the oven baking. You need to skim off the white foam that accumulates around the edges of the pan while the strawberries simmer otherwise the jam will be cloudy. While warm this jam makes a wonderfu sauce and as it cools it thickens into a lovely jam. This recipe only makes one small jar, just enough, and must be kept in the refrigerator. It stays good for a couple of weeks, perfect for your breakfast toast.

Hope you have as much fun watching the cooking segment of CT Style as I did being there! xo

Check out these other fall dishes that may interest you like Mediterranean Layered Dip, Eggplant Balls, Lazy Mans LasagnaLobster Mac N’ Cheese, and don’t forget my Chocolate Eclairs! Enjoy 🙂

CT Style with Ryan & Kat Making Mediterranean Chicken Kabobs!

CT Style with Ryan & Kat Making Mediterranean Chicken Kabobs!

I’m always thrilled to be back on CT Style and that’s where I was this past Friday with Ryan Kristafer & Kat Cosley sharing one of my favorite recipes, Mediterranean Chicken Kabobs made with Greek yogurt. This recipe originated from a show I taped at a beach house right here in Madison two years ago with my friend Maria. It’s delicious on the grill outside and I show on easy it is to grill indoors using my “Lodge” reversible cast iron grill-pan.

I had a wonderful time in The Bender Kitchen meeting Kat Cosley, and as always, with Ryan Kristafer’s quick wit sense of humor he takes it up a notch! Having two little ones of her own Kat totally gets the convenience of being able to make different versions of these flavorful Mediterranean meals which can be made ahead for a busy family,

The Mediterranean Yogurt Chicken Kabobs are one of my all time favorites because it’s such a simple process and just so good for you! Marinate, skewer and BBQ…thats it! This recipe oringially came from Epicurious but as I always do, I tweaked it a bit when it was given to me adding in Spanish smoked paprika, a mild, sweet yet smokey spice thats gives a wonderful addition to the recipe.

 

The sides that go with the kabobs, the homemade tzatziki, hummus and green goddess sauce can be a great compliment to grilled steaks, pork or veal chops, scallops or any fish! These flavors really brighten up any dish. 

You can click on the links above to get to the recipe pages on my website that go with this live cooking segement on CT Style and they are also offered on the CT Style website as well.

You may be looking for something sweet after all these savory dishes so you should check out some of my other recipes like authentic Baklava, Chocolate Crackle Cookies, my own Chocolate Chip Cookie Creation, Drunk Blondie Bars, or Chocolate Pecan Pie