Memorial day is right around the corner! The weather isnt exactly helping it to feel as such but its only two weeks away. One Memorial day that sticks in my head is on a military base in Japan where 98 degrees was the headliners. Fortunately for both of us, I did not choose them for this post! When the weather is warmer, grilling season has started, session beers are a must, Lynyrd Skynyrd plays the music I’m looking for. The All American, thigh thumpin, heart pumping, raise your glass to ‘Murica music. This album does happen to have the song played non-stop on Memorial Day and the Fourth of July – Sweet Home Alabama. Occasionally, I may pair food with expected sounds and music. However this will not be the norm.
One of my favorite dishes at a barbeque, grill sesh or cook out is baked beans. I do not enjoy the overly sweet canned beans and I like my beans with spice and a bit of meat. I have created just that. The bacon adds a smokey hint, the Mexican style chilies add depth and spicy and the two different types of beans really round out these baked beans. Corn muffins, when they are just slightly sweet with a soft crumb and just slightly falling apart are a perfect vehicle to eat these beans with. Above all, spicy baked beans and corn muffins were made to be consumed while Second Helping plays in the background. You will probably need a Second Helping of both!
Vinyl: Lynyrd Skynyrd – Second Helping
Cornbread Muffins and Spicy Baked Beans
Prep Time – 30 minutes
Bake Time – 90 minutes
Total Time – 120 minutes
Serves approx. 4-6
Ingredients – Muffins
o 3 cups of all purpose flour
o 1/2 c sugar
o 1 cup of cornmeal
o 1.5 tsp of salt
o 1.5 tablespoons of baking powder
o 1.5 cups of almond milk
o 1.5 sticks of unsalted butter, melted and cooled
o ½ cup of olive oil
o 2 whole eggs
Instruction – Muffins:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with liners.
- Whisk the first five ingredients together in a bowl. In a separate bowl, mix the almond milk, butter, olive oil and eggs.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just blended.
- Fill each muffin liner about halfway full with batter.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes until the muffins are golden and the tops have just begun to crack.
Ingredients – Baked Beans
o 2-4 slices of bacon
o 1 medium onion, chopped
o ½ cup of ketchup
o 1 tbsp dark brown sugar
o 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
o 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
o 1 garlic clove, minced
o 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
o 1 teaspoon sriracha sauce
o 1/2 cup of dark beer or ginger beer
o 1 teaspoon soy sauce
o 2 cans of dark red kidney beans or cannellini beans (one of each is okay!), drained and rinsed
o 2 -4 dried Mexican style chilies (guajio, ancho etc)
Instruction – Baked Beans
- If oven was already at 350 degrees F for the muffins, leave it on! Otherwise preheat.
- Cook bacon slices in a skillet until crisp, remove the bacon and place on a paper towel. Pour the bacon drippings into a bowl. Chop the bacon and add this to the bowl.
- Add the rest of the ingredients to this bowl and mix well.
- Pour the bean mixture into a glass baking dish. Add the Mexican style chilies, push them into the beans and let them bake with the beans whole. Bake until the beans are bubbling and have started to thicken, roughly 75 minutes.
- Let cool for 15 minutes until serving. Enjoy with a freshly baked corn muffin!
Notes:
Why did I use almond milk in the muffins? It reduces the calories slightly but the real reason is because I am moved and that was the most milk style liquid I have left! Feel free to use whole milk to make these incredibly tender, or continue to use almond milk to help reduce calories!
You can easily omit the bacon in these to make them vegetarian. If you have liquid smoke, a few drops would ensure you still had that smokey flavor.