PARTY BEANS

Today I figured I would throw some beans at you before I throw yet another muffin recipe at you. I know, I am obsessed with those little cakes, scratch that, pieces of heaven. They are a treat, but yet they scream healthy (in moderation of course). Oops, I am suppose to be talking about beans, see what I mean? I am obsessed.

The recipe for these Party Beans, has been with me a long time. For good reason. They are so good. My Aunt in Arizona and I made them together. We went wild over them. They are smokey and sweet and sour, all at the same time. They were a winner from the get go. I think the recipe originally came from Taste of Home but I have yet to find it on their site. I dunno, whoever came up with this recipe did a great job and they deserve credit. So Bravo! to whoever you are.

PARTY BEANS
By the way, I always double the sauce as it goes great over rice.

1 1/2 cups ketchup
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 green pepper. chopped
1/2 cup water
2 to 3 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/2 cup brown sugar
s and p
1 bay leaf
1 can of pinto beans
1 can of black beans
1 can of black eyed peas
1 can of navy beans or Great Northern
1 bag of lime beans or edamame
8 strips turkey bacon, chopped and fried to crispy

In a crockpot combine all the ingredients except edamame. Set to low for 4 to 6 hours. You can also do them in the oven in a Dutch oven at 275F for about two hours if using canned beans, longer if using dried and soaked beans. About 30 minutes before beans are done, add the edamame.
Works out the be about 220 calories per 1/2 cup.

Bench Notes:

I use beans from the bag. I soak them overnight and add them to the crockpot, using a little extra water (about another half of a cup).

I add extra bay leaves because they really give it a lot of flavor.

You can add cilantro to this and/or parsley to kick it up a little. Also hot peppers or liquid smoke adds a boost of flavor. I loved it when I did them with chipotle.
Yup, that's a lot of beans!