A smoky, sweet side dish that is ready when you are

Tales of the Dinner Belle

Whether you are barbecuing steaks, making pulled pork, or just want a hearty side dish to complement your meal, my easy and delicious baked beans is hard to beat. They can be put together in minutes and then they simmer for hours as you go about your day. When you’re ready, you have a hot and hearty, smoky and slightly sweet side dish that no one can resist.

These beans are not over the top, with too much spice or heat. They have just the right amount of saucy flavor to keep them from over powering the main dish. The bacon and onions add the homey touch and yet, you’ve spent almost no time putting this delicious dish together.

We’re going to start by frying six strips of bacon until nice and crisp, remove them from the pan but keep the drippings.

Chop one small onion. Add it to the bacon drippings and cook it until is it brown and tender. Remove from heat.

In a slow cooker, place three cans of pork and beans. In a small bowl, mix together, three tablespoons of brown sugar, three tablespoons ketchup, one and a half tablespoons of yellow mustard and one and a half tablespoons Worcestershire sauce.

To your beans, add your browned onions, and your sauce and then mix well. Add the bacon that you’ve crumbled. Stir this all together, cover the slow cooker and set it on high for four hours.

Brenda Stanley is the mother of five children, including two sets of twins and a grandmother of seven. She is a cookbook author and novelist. For more recipes and information, visit her website www.talesofthedinnerbelle.com.