A Bevy of Baked Beans

Canned navy beans are no longer mild when you add chipotle chiles, Dijon mustard, and bottled barbecue sauce to create a great pan of baked beans.

Three kinds of beans—pinto, kidney, and black—are mixed together with molasses and brown sugar and spiced up with ground cloves and allspice. Chorizo sausage and chipotle chili powder add the wonderful smokiness that makes these beans perfect for serving with grilled meats.

White beans and maple syrup give this dish its signature flavor, while the Dijon mustard and hot sauce add a little kick.

Enhance sweet-and-spicy baked beans with the addition of bacon and beer. We liked the flavor of the amber ale, but you can use any beer you prefer.

Savor the relaxed side of summer with this slow-cooking Dutch oven recipe for beans infused with the flavors of molasses, apple cider vinegar, and dry mustard.

Using dried beans instead of canned helps keep the sodium content low. And beans are one of the most economical sources of protein and fiber.

Transform canned pork and beans into superb baked beans by stirring in peppery-sweet root beer, dry mustard, and hot sauce. The 5-minute prep time might make this dish one of your summertime favorites.

The addition of sausage to a traditional baked bean dish made this recipe a Southern Living Cook-Off category winner. It uses canned beans and bottled barbecue sauce and is hearty enough to be a main dish.

Dress up canned baked beans by sweetening them with both honey and molasses, then stirring in chipotle chiles for a touch of heat.

Use all your favorite baked bean ingredients–onion, ketchup, maple syrup, and mustard–but use lentils instead of kidney or pinto beans. The earthiness of the lentils is a good match for the smokiness of grilled meats.

Limas are the beans of choice for this German-inspired baked bean dish. It's creamier than most baked bean recipes because of the sour cream that's stirred in at the end.

Dark brown sugar, dark molasses, and spicy Worcestershire sauce add bold flavor to this frank-and-beans dish without increasing the grocery bill. A single serving of this summer-favorite, kid-friendly dish is only $1.54.

Adding cola to the brown sugar and molasses is the secret to the complex sweetness of these bacon-accented beans.