Bacon Barbecue Green Bean Casserole

I was actually a little nervous about this recipe. Green beans and barbecue sauce? Even Eric looked at me a little side ways when I told him what I was planning. But the dish kind of wowed me. And it must have wowed the husband a bit too because he didn't even complain about the onions. He actually piled the casserole on top of his chicken breast and ate it that way which makes me wonder if I could throw some shredded chicken into the casserole and take it from a side dish to a main dish. Just might have to try it next time.

Recipe adapted from here.

Ingredients:
6 strips of bacon
1/2 cup yellow onion, chopped
3/4 cup barbecue sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray)
2 14.5 ounce cans of French cut green beans, drained and rinsed

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook bacon in a large skillet. Remove from pan and crumble. Set aside. Reserve 1 tablespoon of dripping and discard the rest. Saute the onions in remaining bacon grease until tender. Stir in barbecue sauce, bring to a boil, and remove from heat.

Place green beans into 1.5 quart baking dish (I divide the beans among 6 small ramkins). Pour the barbecue mixture on top. Cover and bake for approximately 30 minutes. Sprinkle crumbled bacon on top and serve.

Arya only has eyes for the bacon cooking on the stovetop.

Enjoy!

~Krissy

More Casserole Recipes:
Alfredo Green Bean Casserole
Black Bean and Sausage Stovetop Casserole
Cheesy Sausage and Potato Casserole
Cheesy Tomato Zucchini Bake 
Parmesan Chicken Casserole 

Slower Cooker: Alfredo Green Bean Casserole

This is another recipe I tested out on my parents over Memorial weekend. My mom was a little skeptical of this dish. She had never tasted Alfredo sauce and when she tried a bit, she wasn't impressed. But I told her to trust me. Alfredo sauce is great for picking up other flavors like garlic or roasted red pepper, which she loves. Well, after sampling this casserole, she said she's never going back to your typical green bean casserole.

This recipes comes from Pillsbury with a few small changes.

Ingredients:
2 pound green beans (fresh, frozen, or canned. I used canned, drained)
1/2 cup roasted red peppers (jarred or homemade), cut in strips*
1 1/4 cups Alfredo sauce (I prefer Bertolli, never Ragu)
1 cup water chestnut, drained and sliced (optional)**
1 cup French fried onions
Pepper, to taste

Directions:
Whenever I use the slow cooker, I always spray the inside with cooking spray. It makes cleaning it so much easier. So spray the inside of the slow cooker with cooking spray.

Add the beans, water chestnuts, Alfredo sauce, pepper, and roasted red peppers to the slow cooker. Stir to combine.

Cover and cook on Low for 3 to 4 hours, stirring after an hour and a half. Before serving, stir in the French Fried onions.

*Jarred roasted red peppers are so expensive so I make my own roasted red peppers in the oven. My mom thought I was nuts, making my own roasted red peppers. She even came into the kitchen to watch me make them because she didn't believe it was as easy as I said. I recommend making your own using the link above.

**I am the only person I know who likes water chestnuts. So I left them out of this recipe. However, I would have loved to have them in the casserole.

I can't wait to make this casserole for Eric's family, especially his mom. She loves red pepper just like my mom and this dish has such a prominent, delicious red pepper flavor. Eric does not find red peppers as exciting and tasty as the rest of us so I might had crumbled bacon topping to the top of the casserole just to entice him to try it.

Enjoy!

~Krissy