Root Beer Baked Beans with bacon

By Foodiewife

With smoky bacon, sweet root beer, and a buttery bread crumb topping, everyone’s sure to enjoy these appetizing baked beans. -

Ingredients

• FOR THE BEANS, COOK:
• 4 4strips thick-sliced bacon, diced
• SWEAT:
• 2 2cups diced onions
• 1 1green bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 1Tbsp. minced fresh garlic
• DEGLAZE:
• 2 cups root beer
• 2 cans pinto beans (15 oz. each), drained and rinsed
• 1 can tomato purée (10.75 oz.)
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1 ⁄4 1/4cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2 2Tbsp. each Worcestershire sauce and cider vinegar
• 1 1Tbsp. prepared yellow mustard
• 1 ⁄2 1/2tsp. each Tabasco sauce, root beer extract, and kosher salt
• FOR THE TOPPING, PULSE:
• 3 slices white bread, buttered
• 2 Tbsp. minced fresh parsley

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 425°.

For the beans, cook bacon in a nonstick skillet until crisp; transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate and discard all but 1 Tbsp. drippings.

Sweat onions, bell pepper, and garlic in drippings over medium heat until soft, 5 minutes.

Deglaze skillet with root beer and bring to a boil; cook until root beer nearly evaporated, 10 minutes. Stir in beans, tomato purée, ketchup, brown sugar, Worcestershire, vinegar, mustard, Tabasco, root beer extract, salt, and bacon; bring to a simmer. Transfer beans to a 2-qt. baking dish.

For the topping, pulse bread in a food processor to crumbs. Add parsley; pulse to combine. Top beans with bread crumb mixture; bake until topping is toasted and beans are bubbly, 15 minutes.

Nutrition Information
per serving: 180 cal; 3g total fat (1g sat); 3mg chol; 522mg sodium; 33g carb; 1g fiber; 7g protein