#23: Honey Baked Beans! (Vegetarian and diabetic friendly, but still super yummy!)

Dear Tiffany,

Tonight we celebrated my birthday which is coming up on Monday (I missed you, by the way!) by having a potluck.  I was looking for a way to use the epic amounts of beans I have in my kitchen, to not have to go to the grocery store, and also make something that my vegetarian friend AND my borderline diabetic friend could enjoy.  I came up with these yummy baked beans!

The Basics:
Prep time: About 5 minutes, then in the crockpot all day or the oven for about 6 hours.
Good for leftovers: yes!
cost: about $5 or less
servings: 8 to 10


The ingredients:

1lb beans (I used small white beans, but lima beans, great northern, or really any kind of beans would work great)

1 onion, chopped

1 cup honey

1-2 cups chopped pineapple (optional)

The Process:

Soak the beans overnight, then drain and rinse them.  Place half of the chopped onion in the bottom of a crock pot or dutch oven (or even just a deep baking dish).  Add the beans, then the rest of the onion, and pour the honey over the top.  Add enough water to cover an inch or two above the beans.  Then bake at 375 degrees F for 6 hours (if using the oven), or cook in the crockpot for 4-6 hours on high, or 8-10 hours on low.  Check on it every few hours and add a little water if the beans on top are starting to get dry.  Towards the end, add the pineapple.

This recipe is great because...

1) its super yummy

2) super simple

3) no salt added...and in my opinion it didn't need any on serving either.

4) honey is a healthier sweetener, and a much better option for diabetics (for some interesting thoughts on honey,  see here).

5) the absence of bacon or ham fat means that this recipe is overall very low fat.

6) oh. and its really really yummy too!

If you want a less healthy, non-vegetarian version, you can take add bacon with the onions.  There's a similar recipe here that uses bacon.

Enjoy!