Bourbon Bacon Baked Beans

  

For our Bourbon themed meal this week, I searched for the perfect baked bean recipe.  When I came across this one that had DR. PEPPER as an ingredient sealed the deal for me!  I was a little taken aback when I realized the baking time for this dish was 3 hours.  But the long cooking time ensures that all the ingredients transform into a rich caramelized base for the bacon and beans.  This was an incredible side dish.  I will be making this again and it would be ideal to double the ingredients and bake in a 9 x 13 for a large gathering.

½ cup brown sugar

1 T. ground paprika

1 t. dry mustard

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 (12 fl. oz.) can Dr. Pepper

¾ cup ketchup

¼ cup Worcestershire sauce

8 slices bacon

1 large onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

¼ cup bourbon

2 (16 oz.) cans baked beans with pork

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Mix brown sugar, paprika, mustard, and cayenne pepper together in a bowl. Whisk in pepper soda, ketchup, and Worcestershire sauce until brown sugar is dissolved.

Cut 4 slices of bacon into small strips. Cook and stir in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until almost crispy, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, reserving bacon grease.

Stir onion into the bacon grease in the Dutch oven; cook and stir until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic; cook and stir for 1 minute. Pour in bourbon, stirring to scrape up browned bits off the bottom with a wooden spoon. Stir bacon strips back in.

Pour brown sugar mixture and baked beans into the Dutch oven. Simmer until beans are heated through, about 15 minutes. Arrange remaining 4 slices of bacon on top of the beans.

Bake in the preheated oven, covered, until beans are bubbly and sauce is syrupy, about 2½ to 3 hours.

from www.allrecipes.com