These savory barbecue baked beans should be on your dinner table this weekend

Growing up, Memorial Day meant that school was almost out, Summer was just about here and cookouts were coming back. In my family, Memorial Day was the first time in months that the whole family had been together. There is something about the cold weather in Winter and the rainy season during the Spring that makes people want to stay indoors. 

Memorial Day weekend also meant the return of my mother’s famous barbecue baked beans. The recipe itself is pretty simple: Bush’s Original Baked Beans, Sweet Baby Ray’s barbecue sauce, ground turkey, brown sugar and some seasonings. But there is something magical that happens when you combine all of these ingredients together to make a dish that is more than the sum of its parts.

For me, this dish tastes like hot fun in the Summer time and the promise of time spent with the ones I love.

Now matter how you choose to celebrate Memorial Day this year, I hope you find yourself in good company drenched in the warmth that the start of a new season brings. 

Barbecue Baked Beans 

Serves 10 to 12

Hands-on time: 15 minutes

Total time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

1 pound (16 oz) ground turkey meat

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper 

2 (16 ounce) cans Bush’s Homestyle Baked Beans 

1 (18 ounce) bottle Sweet Baby Ray’s Barbecue Sauce

1 tablespoon Creole mustard

1/4 cup brown sugar

Instructions

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat ground turkey meat in a large cast-iron skillet until cooked through, about 5 to 6 minutes. Season meat with garlic salt, salt and pepper. 

Add two cans of Bush’s Baked Beans to skillet and add barbecue sauce, mustard and brown sugar. Cook stirring for 5 to 6 minutes until mixture gently simmers. 

Place skillet in oven and allow to cook for around 25 minutes. Serve hot.