Spiced Pumpkin Baked Beans

I roasted a pumpkin for a bread recipe I was making and I had some leftover, so I decided to fold it into baked beans. Wow, what a surprise! Spiced Pumpkin Baked Beans are hearty, sweet, tangy and delicious. They can be served with meatloaf, chicken or ham. This is a wonderful, fun recipe and can be baked in the oven or cooked in the slow cooker. So good!

Fresh roasted pumpkin is the star of this dish, flavorful and seasonal. I bought a sugar pumpkin locally to use in another recipe and roasted it on a sheet pan. The pumpkin yielded about 2 cups of roasted pumpkin. I used 1 cup in a recipe for Pumpkin Bread with Cream Cheese Swirl. And the other cup I used for these Spiced Pumpkin Baked Beans.

Tips on roasting a fresh pumpkin:

1. Use a sugar pumpkin, one that is small and typically used for baking pies and other desserts. These pumpkins are usually labeled as pie pumpkins in the market.
2. Wash and dry the pumpkin to remove any dirt. Using a sharp knife, cut off the stem and the top of the pumpkin, so it has a flat edge to sit on. Then cut the pumpkin in half from the bottom to the top.
3. Using a metal spoon, remove the pumpkin seeds and stringy middle, reserving the seeds for roasting later, if desired.
4. Spray a sheet pan with cooking spray. Also spray the flesh of the pumpkin with cooking spray and place both halves face down on the baking sheet.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes. Remove pumpkin halves from the oven and allow to cool.
6. Using a spoon, scoop the roasted flesh out of the pumpkin skin. Store remaining pumpkin in a mason jar in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Of course, you can use canned pumpkin in place of roasting a pumpkin. There are many choices of quality canned pumpkin, pick one that you’ve had good luck with and use it for this recipe. I seem to always go back to Libby’s brand pumpkin puree for my recipes when needed.

Spiced Pumpkin Baked Beans

Makes 8 servings.

Ingredients:

• 4 slices bacon, chopped
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 small green pepper, chopped
• 2 11-ounce cans Campbells pork and beans
• 15-ounce can of black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 cup pumpkin
• 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 1/3 cup honey barbecue sauce
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

How to make Spiced Pumpkin Baked Beans?

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 8×8 casserole dish with cooking spray and set aside.
• In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon, onion and green pepper for about 10 minutes. Cook until the bacon fat is rendered and begins to brown. Place the bacon mixture on a paper towel to drain.
• In the same skillet, add the remaining ingredients and stir. Cook for 5 minutes until heated through. Add bacon and vegetable mixture back into the skillet and stir.
• Pour the bean mixture into the prepared baking dish and bake in a 350 degree oven for 35-40 minutes. Makes 8 servings.

Note: This recipe can easily be cooked in a slow cooker. Follow the same directions to cook bacon and vegetables, then put bacon mixture and the rest of the ingredients in the slow-cooker and cook on low for 4 hours.

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Spiced Pumpkin Baked Beans

Add roasted pumpkin to baked beans for a fun tasty fall side dish.

Servings: 8

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 40 minutes mins

Total Time: 55 minutes mins

Ingredients 

• 4 slices bacon, chopped
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 small green pepper, chopped
• 2- 11 ounce cans Campbells pork and beans
• 15 ounce can of black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 cup pumpkin
• 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 1/3 cup honey barbecue sauce
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Instructions 

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 8×8 casserole dish with cooking spray and set aside.
• In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon, onion and green pepper for about 10 minutes. Cook until the bacon fat is rendered and begins to brown. Place the bacon mixture on a paper towel to drain.
• In the same skillet, add the remaining ingredients and stir. Cook for 5 minutes until heated through. Add bacon and vegetable mixture back into the skillet and stir.
• Pour the bean mixture into the prepared baking dish and bake in a 350 degree oven for 35-40 minutes. Makes 8 servings.
  

Notes

Note: This recipe can easily be cooked in a slow cooker. Follow the same directions to cook bacon and vegetables, then put bacon mixture and the rest of the ingredients in the slow-cooker and cook on low for 4 hours.