Saucy and Spicy Overnight Beans

Chris has been craving baked beans. I made some a few weeks ago and he has been begging for them since. I love cooking beans - they are cheap, easy to make, incredibly good for you and can be made in a multitude of ways. I was going to make my usual beans up this weekend, but decided to give a little shout out to Saucy Mama and whip up a batch using a few of their products. The resulting beans were delish. You should give them a try!

Saucy and Spicy Overnight Beans (makes 12 side dish servings)

4 oz bacon, diced

1/2 large onion, diced

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 C strong black coffee

3/4 C ketchup

1/2 C molasses

1/3 C dark agave nectar (or 1/2 C brown sugar)

1/4 C Saucy Mama Chipotle Mustard

1 T Saucy Mama Hot Wing Sauce

2 T red wine vinegar

2 T worchestershire sauce

juice of half a lemon

1/4 t liquid smoke

1/4 t dried oregano

1/2 t chili powder

5 C water

1 lb dried navy or great northern beans, picked over

Heat a medium frying pan over med-high heat. Add bacon and fry until most of the fat is rendered, about 5 minutes. Add onions and saute until soft, about 5 minutes more. Add garlic and saute approximately 30 seconds or until garlic is fragrant. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine all the remaining ingredients except beans and stir until smooth.

Add dried beans, onion/bacon mixture and the sauce to a large crockpot. Set the pot to high and cook 12 hours (or overnight) or until the beans are tender. If you like, season with salt and pepper to taste before serving, but I didn't find they needed either.

I served our beans tonight with grilled sausages and crisp slaw. It was the perfect Labor Day dinner.