Note: "Horace" and "Doris" were nicknames for my Grandma June's cousin and his wife. Not sure where they got those names. I kind of assumed it was a radio show, but if so it wasn't popular enough to last and get a Wikipedia page. Grandpa Dutchy gave me this recipe for a company picnic in the late '80s - early '90s. These beans are runny so if you're taking them somewhere to share make sure there are bowls and spoons. And napkins. And water or wet-naps (or just lick your fingers). Whatever.
Ingredients:
1 can of V-8 juice (46 fluid oz., it's the tallest can)
1 can of Pork and Beans (tallest can, same size as the V-8, but it's measured in weight -- net wt 53 oz.)
1 med white onion, minced (can substitute yellow, but other onions change the taste)
1 lb. bacon, minced (Oh, this is the awful part! Partially freezing it and using kitchen shears helps, but it's still a miserable chore.)
pepper (to taste, careful because of the mustard)
salt (to taste, careful because the bacon is salty)
molasses (to taste, a few tablespoons)
dry mustard (to taste, a teaspoon or two)
Directions:
In a gargantuan stock pot that is NOT aluminum (aluminum and tomato do not get along well with each other), dump in the V-8 juice. Add the Pork and Beans next (so they aren't on the bottom of the pan sticking and turning black). Put this pot over low heat. You will be occasionally stirring it while tending to the bacon and onion.
Saute the bacon. You may have to do this in batches depending on the size of your skillet. I use a 3-qt saute pan and I do 2 batches so that there's a single layer in the pan. Drain each batch of bacon on paper towels and then dump it into the bean pot. Leave a small amount of bacon drippings in the skillet after the last batch.
Now saute the onion in the drippings. I can usually do the onion in 1 batch. Just cook until they're soft, don't let them brown. When done dump them into the bean pot.
Let these flavors simmer together a while and then start tasting & adding the seasonings. BE CAREFUL! The most common thing I do is over-pepper. The only way to counter this is with more V-8. Start with a teaspoon each of salt, pepper & dry mustard and a tablespoon of molasses. Let it simmer a while and then taste again. Adjust, simmer and taste. Repeat until you're satisfied or you just have to go because you're doing this at the last minute and need to get these beans to the darn picnic!
Number Of Servings:412
Preparation Time:days & days & days
