These beans are fabulous for potluck dinners! They are affordable and easy to make. The recipe makes a lot, and any leftovers freeze and reheat well. Be sure to cook them on low in the crockpot all day - the flavors blend and taste better the longer it cooks.
Without fail, every time I bring this dish to a potluck, I get asked for the recipe. Lately, I have begun carrying copies of the recipe with me to hand out should someone ask for it!
Brown:
- ½ lb bacon
- ½ lb hamburger
- Onion
16 oz cans, drained and rinsed:
- Butter beans
- Red kidney beans
- Lima beans
- Pinto beans
- Baked beans – use a bigger can, don’t drain or rinse
Sauce:
- 2 Tbs molasses
- ½ C sugar
- ½ C brown sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- ½ C BBQ sauce
Add browned mixture, beans, and sauce to a crockpot or oven-save, covered casserole. Bake 1 hr at 250 or low crockpot all day.
Frugal notes: It is very easy to put this dish together very inexpensively.
- If I find bacon on sale, I buy a few for the freezer.
- When ground beef goes on sale, I divide it up into 1 pound bags for the freezer.
- Since bacon comes in 1 lb packages, I will cut up the whole package, use a pound of hamburger, and 2 onions. I brown it, and divide it in half. Half for the freezer for a 2nd batch of beans, and half for the current batch.
- Meat frozen raw can be successfully cooked and refrozen.

