campfire baked beans

It hurts me to even tell you that I know that baked beans get a bad rep.

I, for one, don’t understand why this is.  

Sure, there is a horrible stereotype about beans in general being a ::ahem:: gas producing food. But beans are good for you! Beans paired with ketchup and molasses? Even better!

Bring on the beans!

Baked beans hold a special place in my heart. They remind me of camping when I was younger. Sitting around the campfire, playing games, telling stories – and of course, eating great food. You just can’t go wrong with a can of baked beans or at least a dozen s’mores to get you through the fear of being eaten alive by a wild animal.

I just completely lied to you. I am not a camper. I was never a camper. In fact, I’ve never gone camping. The only camping I’ve ever done was in a backyard – twice. Both times I failed at sleeping in my tent. 

The first time I may or may  not have ended up sleeping in my friend’s old rusty BMW for the fear of spiders laying eggs in our ears. We giggled and slept for an uncomfortable night because it’s pretty hard to fit two 18 year old girls in the backseat of a car.

The second time was in another back yard, right after I had been kicked in the head in an inflatable bouncy jump. I claimed my head hurt, so I had to sleep inside. Lucky for me no one questioned me when I ended up in the ER with a concussion the next morning. Don’t tell anyone, but I faked it so I didn’t have to sleep in my tent (joking.).

So while baked beans may not stir up any nostalgic memories for me, I’m really good at making up stories in my head about what would have happened if I were an adventurous outdoorsy girl. The Husband is still trying to figure out how he married a type such as myself – and I’m not even Dutch. I’m ruining the bloodline AND I don’t like to camp. I should be shunned.

Campfire Baked Beans

• 2 cups dry navy beans, soaked for 8 hours
• 1 large sweet onion, diced
• 1/3 cup vegetable broth
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 2 tbsp. molasses
• 1 tsp. yellow mustard
• 1/2 tsp. chili powder
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions: Begin by soaking your beans overnight in a large bowl filled with water. The next morning, place your beans and water in a large saucepan and cook on medium heat for about an hour, or until the beans are tender.

Once the beans are tender, drain the water from the beans. Place the cooked beans in a Crockpot and add all other ingredients. Give the mixture a stir and heat on low for 8-10 hours.

The only thing that could make tonight any better is if I had a fireplace.

And s’mores.

Perhaps an old BMW to relive memories?

Do you think the Husband would dress up as a bear to scare me?

I didn’t think so either.

Question: Are you a camper/adventurous person?

Tagged as: baked beans, campfire foods, camping foods, crockpot baked beans, gluten free, ketchup, molasses