Cousin Ellens Baked Beans Food

COUSIN ELLEN'S BAKED BEANS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Spray 9x12 baking dish w/ nonstick spray.
• Slice the uncooked bacon into 1 to 2" pieces.
• Fry lightly over medium heat , stirring occasionally, until it begins to crisp up around the edges.
• Scoop out the bacon and set aside in a bowl. Do NOT drain.
• SAVE the bacon grease that is in the skillet. (optional, see step below).
• Throw the onions into the skillet with the bacon grease and cook long enough to wilt them a bit. Stirring them around in the hot grease a couple of minutes or so.
• NOTE: You have 2 options here: 1) remove the cooked onions and reserve them for the recipe or 2) add both the onions & bacon grease to the recipe. I found no difference, one way or the other, so I toss it.
• Combine the first 5 ingredients into a large bowl: beans, water, dark brown sugar, corn syrup and ketchup. Stir.
• Add the onions AND the grease from the bacon pan. Stir gently until mixed with bean mixture. Add 1/2 of bacon to the beans, stir to combine.
• Pour mixture into a 9x 12 prepared baking dish or any oven safe serving dish.
• Top with the remaining bacon pieces.
• Bake UNCOVERED for approximately 3 hours at 350°F . Watch so that it doesn't dry out. It will be thick and look very dark and almost caramelized when it is done.
• NOTE: You can stretch the recipe by adding an additional can or 2 of beans without compromising the end result. No need to add any other ingredients.
• I DO NOT recommend making this in the crock pot.

THE BEST BAKED RICE AND BEANS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Pour white rice into a casserole dish and season with salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, cayenne, and oregano. Pour in olive oil and stir until rice is thoroughly coated with oil. Add salsa, chicken broth, and kidney beans; stir until evenly combined. Cover very tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven until rice is tender, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Remove foil, taste and adjust seasoning if necessary, and fluff with a fork. Serve hot.

SOUTHERN-STYLE BAKED BEANS

Steps:

• Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position. Heat oven to 325 degrees. In a large pan, fry bacon until it is partially cooked and you have about 1/4 cup of drippings. Remove bacon from pan and drain on paper towels.
• Add onion and bell pepper to drippings in pan and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add beans, bacon and remaining ingredients; bring to a simmer. (If there's not enough room in the pan, add beans and heat to a simmer; transfer to a large bowl and stir in remaining ingredients).
• Pour flavored beans into a greased 9-by-13-inch (or similar size) oven-proof pan (a large, wide casserole allows the beans to thicken nicely). Bake, uncovered, until the beans are bubbly and the sauce is the consistency of pancake syrup, about 45 minutes to 2 hours, depending on the "juiciness" of the brand of beans you use.
• Let stand to thicken slightly. Serve warm.

THE BEST BAKED RICE AND BEANS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Pour white rice into a casserole dish and season with salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, cayenne, and oregano. Pour in olive oil and stir until rice is thoroughly coated with oil. Add salsa, chicken broth, and kidney beans; stir until evenly combined. Cover very tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven until rice is tender, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Remove foil, taste and adjust seasoning if necessary, and fluff with a fork. Serve hot.