Apple Pie Baked Beans

Apple pie + baked beans = 'merica!  I use home made apple pie filling (see recipe below), but you can use it from a can as well.  The apples add a twist of fall to old fashioned BBQ baked beans that you will love!  I use our peppery venison sausage, but any will do.  Great over a campfire, too, or cook it in your smoker!

Apple Pie Baked Beans 

Ingredients:

1 pound bulk hot sausage

1 onion, finely chopped

1 red bell pepper, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 (28 ounce) cans baked beans, partially drained

1 (21 ounce) can apple pie filling

1 cup barbecue sauce

1 tablespoon yellow mustard

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon hot sauce, optional—I don’t use it because my sausage and rub enough heat

2 teaspoons barbecue rub seasoning

Directions:

1.        Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add sausage. Cook, crumbling with a spoon until browned and fat has rendered out.

2.        Add onion, bell pepper, and salt to the sausage and cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables have softened.

3.        Add baked beans, apple pie filling, barbecue sauce, yellow mustard Worcestershire, hot sauce, and barbecue rub seasoning, and stir to combine. Use a spoon to break up the apple pieces a bit.

4.        Bring mixture to a simmer, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Freezer Apple Pie Filling

Ingredients  

• 1 lemon
• 7 pounds baking apples approx. 22-24 cups
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 6 cups water
•  

Instructions 

1.                          Zest & juice the lemon and set aside.

2.                          Peel and slice apples fairly thick (about 8 slices per apple.) Toss apple slices with lemon juice & zest, and set aside.

3.                          In a large pot, combine both sugars, corn starch, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and water. Bring to a boil while whisking over medium-high heat and let boil 2 minutes until thick and bubbly. Stir in apple slices and cover.

4.                          Reduce heat to low and let simmer 10 minutes or until apples begin to soften. They do not need to be completely cooked! Remove from heat and keep covered. Let cool about 30-40 minutes, checking periodically. Your apples should be soft but not mushy.

5.                          Ladle equal amounts into 4-5 freezer bags. (approx 2 ½ cups into each bag.)

6.                          Let cool on the counter and then freeze for up to one year.