Baked Beans

"Hunger makes raw beans taste sweet."
-Dutch Proverb

I've never eaten raw beans, but I doubt that even if I were starving they would taste sweet.  Though sweet beans does conjure up a funny memory.  Once upon a time, after my mom had gone back to college as a non-trad student, my dad, brother, and I decided to surprise her with dinner.  We made steak, rolls, baked beans, and pineapple upside down cake.  The rolls were hard as rocks, the pineapple upside down cake was a disaster, and the baked beans were candied.  Much of this was blamed on me, but it was a breakdown in communication between 3 chefs, and at the time I was only about 11 years old.  Lesson learned, don't put too much brown sugar in the beans!  People look at baked beans and think, I don't have time for that.  They really don't take long, and they go with just about any down-home food you can cook.

Baked Beans

2 15oz cans Van Camp's Pork & Beans
1 yellow onion (2.5" diam), minced
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 - 1/3 cup mustard

1.  Empty beans into skillet, discard lump of fat if there is one.  Add remaining ingredients.

2.  Bring to a bubble over medium heat.  Lower heat to medium-low, but maintain a slow simmer.

3.  Stir frequently until beans are thick (when you stir you should be able to see the bottom of the skillet for half a second before it oozes back together) and onions are tender.

4.  Turn heat to the lowest setting to keep warm until ready to serve.  Stir occasionally to prevent scorching.