You may be asking – why would I want to make baked beans myself, when I can just open a tin? Well, firstly if you live in the US or Canada it is pretty impossible to find a syn free variety unless paying for UK imported ones, secondly the tinned ones are usually quite high in sugar (yes, even the syn free varieties) and thirdly, they don’t count towards your 1/3 superfree if you open up a tin, but make them yourself from my recipe and they will, because lots of yummy vegetable goodness is included in the sauce and the use of butternut squash, gives a natural sweetness in place of the sugar that you see in traditional recipes.

I recommend making the sauce the day before to reduce some of the cooking time. The beans have to be soaked overnight anyway, so it is easy enough to cook up your sauce in advance, so it is all ready for the morning.

No Added Sugar Baked Beans

Slimming Eats Recipe

makes approx 8 cup of baked beans

Extra Easy -  syn free per serving

Green – syn free per serving

Ingredients

• 2 cups of dried haricot beans (or similar white bean)
• 2 small onions, chopped
• 1 stick of celery, chopped
• 1 small carrot, chopped
• 200g  of butternut squash chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 700ml of passata
• 1 litre of chicken stock
• 1 tablespoon of paprika (not the smoked varieties)
• 1 tsp of mustard powder
• 1 tablespoon of mixed herbs (thyme, parsley, basil and oregano)
• couple of splashes of Worcestershire sauce
• splash of balsamic vinegar
• salt and white pepper
• sweetener (optional)
• low calorie spray

Optional: Try adding some syn free ham or bacon for a yummy smoky taste.

Method

Place the haricot beans in a large bowl, cover with cold water and allow to soak overnight.

Spray a large pot with some low calorie spray. Add 1 of the chopped onions (reserve the other chopped onion for later), celery, carrot and garlic and fry over a medium heat to soften.

Add the butternut squash, herbs and paprika and fry for a further couple of minutes.

Add the passata, stock, mustard powder and Worcestershire sauce and balsamic vinegar. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until butternut squash is softened and sauce has reduced down slightly (approx 45 mins).

Place sauce in a blender and blend until smooth. (If making the sauce the night before, once cooled, place in container in the refrigerator, until the next day).

Thoroughly rinse the soaked beans, then place in a pot, cover with water and season with salt, bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for approx 30 mins, until beans are cooked and softened. Drain and set aside.

Preheat oven to 150c or 300f (gas mark 2)

Spray a large pot with some low calorie spray, add the reserved onion and fry until lightly golden and softened. Add the beans and sauce and stir well. Add some sweetener to taste if needed.

Cover with a lid and place in centre of oven and bake for approx 4 hours. (These will also be great done in a slow cooker at either a high or low setting). Check the beans half way through cooking time, if they look like they are beginning to dry out a little, just add a little more stock or water.

Once cooked, you can then portion the beans up into little tubs. I place some in the fridge and some in the freezer for another day.

Great served on toast or jacket potatoes, or as a side to a main meal or as part of your breakfast. Also don’t forget that as these are homemade and have added vegetables etc, these will count towards your 1/3 superfree.

These would even be great added into a sausage casserole.

Enjoy!!!!

The recipe above has been calculated for Slimming World, however for those of you following the Weight Watchers plan or another calorie controlled type diet. Below is the approx. nutritional information:

Filed under: Extra Easy, grains, beans or pulses, Green, side dish, syn free, vegetables