#MMAZ Dates + {No Sugar Baked Beans}

Posted: August 27, 2012

I have been planning this recipe and post for literally weeks... ever since one of my readers requested a low (or no) sugar baked beans recipe in time for the Labor Day weekend festivities.  Your wish is my command.  Coinciding with this request was a new blog challenge created by my friend Heather where we cook through the alphabet: A to Z.  She picks the ingredients, we all create recipes/posts on Meatless Mondays with that same ingredient.  The plus for you (the reader!) is that you can go to her site and see a bunch of different recipes all with the same ingredient!  I missed A - C, but made sure to be ready for the big D: dates! 

Dates:

Is it just me, or does a big pile of dates look awfully similar to a bunch of cockroaches? Just sayin'...


Speaking of cockroaches... I took Babycakes to the Butterfly Pavillion recently. Her favorite part was petting, picking up, and playing with the hissing cockroaches. Um, yeeeeeeah, definitely her daddy's daughter.

Now that I've thoroughly grossed you out, let's get back to this no sugar baked beans recipe!! I decided to use dates as the sweetener instead of sugar.  First you blend them THE DATES up into a semi-dry gooey mess:

Then you further blend them with hot water into a smooth puree, with a consistency similar to peanut butter:

This was finger lickin' good.  I will definitely be making more things utilizing this date puree in the VERY near future!

Introducing No Sugar Baked Beans:

A perfect side dish for that end of summer bbq. 

And yes, I realize my recipe is not entirely meatless (see small pile of bacon crumbles on the top).  You could omit that part or use a vegetarian meat substitute, if desired. I just happen to like bacon in my baked beans...I'm a Southern gal.

Questions:

  • What are your favorite bbq dishes?
  • Are you sad summer is coming to a close?

{No Sugar Baked Beans}

Description

No Sugar Baked Beans - sweetened with dates | No Sugar Sweet Life

Ingredients

2 cans
Navy Beans (drained & rinsed)
3 tablespoons
Date Puree (1 cup dates, 1/3 cup hot water)
1⁄4 teaspoon
Dry Mustard
1⁄4 teaspoon
Garlic Powder
1⁄2 teaspoon
Onion Flakes
3 tablespoons
Ketchup
2 slices
Bacon (optional)

Instructions

1. Make Date Puree:

  • Blend 1 cup of pitted dates (I used an immersion blender)
  • Add 1/3 cup of super hot water and continue to blend until smooth

2. Cook bacon in microwave.
3. Add all ingredients into a quart-sized pan.
4. Stir over medium heat for about 8 minutes, or until warmed through.
5. Enjoy!

Yields 4 Servings

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Comments

Submitted by Corrie Anne - August 27, 2012 - 12:34am

Love this recipe... I'm not a fan of all the sugar in baked beans!!!! I'm in the depths of despair about summer ending!! boooooooooo!

Submitted by kelly - August 28, 2012 - 5:46pm

I do love fall, but it's sooooooooooo dang short!! And I HATE SNOW. So, yeah....summer ending is a big bummer.
Submitted by Wendy - August 27, 2012 - 4:54am

K, Not so sad to see summer go, but then fall and spring are my favorite seasons love to see the Aspens change, and to feel the chill in the air. Can't wait to see what you have store in the coming months, starting my reboot 9/6, so looking foward to more MMAZ.
Wendy

Submitted by kelly - August 28, 2012 - 5:47pm

How long are you planning to Reboot? I am actually toying with the idea of doing a month-long vegetarian challenge on the blog in the upcoming weeks. I think it will be good for me to get out of my comfort zone and take away a big of the "fear" people have about cooking vegetarian meals for their families.
Submitted by Lindsay @ The Lean Green Bean - August 27, 2012 - 6:27am

so clever!

Submitted by kelly - August 28, 2012 - 5:48pm

It's even better in the cream cheese frosting I made for one of next week's posts :)
Submitted by Michelle @ Eat Move Balance - August 27, 2012 - 8:14am

Billiant idea to use date puree for the sweetener! I love it! Thank you.

Submitted by kelly - August 28, 2012 - 5:49pm

It's a bit of a pain to actually puree the dates, but you can make a big batch and use it for a number of different recipes. It should keep for at least 2 weeks in the fridge.
Submitted by Amber - August 27, 2012 - 8:40am

These look amazing! I'm intrigued by the idea of dates as a substitute for refined sugar....I wonder how it would fair in baked goods? It might be worth the experimentation!

Submitted by kelly - August 28, 2012 - 6:20pm

If you try it in baked goods, let me know how it goes!!

Submitted by Lauren @ Oatmeal after Spinning - August 27, 2012 - 11:05am

Holy Date Puree! Yum!
I love using dates as a natural sweetener- though I've only done the obvious before (either for "cakes" or "Larabars"). This is pretty clever!
And I will be honest- I've never made baked beans before, ever. I don't know why- but it seems daunting to me? Pretty silly considering I make hummus and black bean tacos and other things with legumes all the time...

Submitted by kelly - August 28, 2012 - 6:22pm

I've missed you commenting on my blog - so glad you stopped by and felt inspired to comment :) I used the remaining date puree in a cream cheese frosting for pumpkin bread muffins. Holy YUMMOLA! (Recipe next week). I don't know anyone who's ever made baked beans before. Those cans are just so simple and make you believe you need to buy them! First I had to google what KIND of beans to use to make baked beans - I had no idea!

Submitted by Calee Himes - August 27, 2012 - 12:39pm

such a great idea!

Submitted by kelly - August 28, 2012 - 6:23pm

I'm just glad that Heather MADE me use them (as part of her MMAZ!).

Submitted by Wanda - August 27, 2012 - 2:19pm

I have printed several of your recipes to try and this one is one that is at the top of the list. I love baked beans, but the carbs from the sugar are killers for my husband and the salt is bad for me. This recipe seems like it will work for us both.

Submitted by kelly - August 28, 2012 - 6:23pm

You'll have to let me know what you think when you make them :)
Submitted by Doris - August 27, 2012 - 3:44pm

Do you by any chance use MyFItnessPal.com and add and save your recipes to the database? "cause if you do, that would totally make my day!

Thanks for the great looking recipe. I recently discovered dates as a sweetener myself.

Submitted by kelly - August 28, 2012 - 6:24pm

I don't use MyFitnessPal. Sorry!
Submitted by Ksenija @ Health Ninja - August 28, 2012 - 6:43am

Not such a fan of the sweet baked beans - I prefer the more savory variation of this dish. But the date puree opens up a ton of opportunities to replace sweeteners in tons of recipes. I bet it also tastes great as a topping for oatmeal, pancakes, mug cakes or to dip some apple slices into it. Oh man... so going to make this one this week!

Submitted by kelly - August 28, 2012 - 6:25pm

I've been using the date puree a couple different ways - on peanut butter toast, in cream cheese frosting, etc... and I bet it would be wonderful with apple slices and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Yum!!!
Submitted by Heather @ Better With Veggies - August 28, 2012 - 5:36pm

I love that you sweetened these with dates - I'm still learning how versatile these are. And bacon bits would be great here - and typically have nothing meat-related in them. :)

Submitted by kelly - August 28, 2012 - 5:42pm

Thanks for helping me along on this whole vegetarian road! I'm thinking of doing a month-long vegetarian challenge on the blog for me & Dear Hubby. Exciting, I know :) PS. Speaking of date puree... I happened to mix it into a cream cheese frosting for a future post. Oh.M.GEEEEEEEEE!!! So good!
Submitted by Heather @ Better With Veggies - August 28, 2012 - 6:01pm

I think the vegetarian challenge is a great idea - it's what got me more comfortable with the idea of not eating meat and helped me see how my body felt.

Submitted by Brittany - August 28, 2012 - 8:49pm

I make honey baked beans every fall/winter! I'm going to try it with dates this year!! I love me some baked beans!

Submitted by Erika - September 6, 2012 - 12:53pm

OMG!! I've always thought they were similar to cockroaches!!! so, I have never tasted them!!!

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