Baked Bean Casserole

Have you ever seen a picture of a meal in a magazine or advertised on tv that made your stomach leap for joy and have you thinking, Man, I really want some of that right now. That is my reaction any time Olive Garden has a commercial and they advertise for their pasta, salad and garlic bread Oh man, now I really want some! Well, the meal this week is not one of those meals. To be quite honest, its looks do it no justice; however, once you have a bite your stomach will be sending you back for more. This is a dish that my mom has baked over the years and it is one of my favorites because it is so easy and inexpensive!

• 1 can Bush's Original Baked Beans (28 oz.)
• 2 cups of Shredded Mild Cheddar (8 oz.)
• 1 cup of ketchup
• 1 cup of light brown sugar
• 1 lb of ground beef (you can also use ground turkey for a healthier alternative and it tastes the same)
  

The first thing you are going to do will be to brown your meat. I would recommend using a large soup pot since you will be adding other ingredients to the meat and you will dirty less dishes.

Next, you will want to add the baked beans, brown sugar, and ketchup, stirring between each addition to make sure the mixture is even.

Once you have combined all of the ingredients will need to pour it into a casserole dish and add 1 cup of the shredded cheese to the top of the dish and now you are ready to bake it in the oven.

Prior to the prep section you should preheat your oven to 350 so that it may begin preheating while you are preparing your meat and compiling the ingredients. You are going to bake the dish for a total of 25 minutes. After 15 minute of baking have elapsed you will want to remove the dish and stir the dish mixing the cheese up. Then before returning the dish back to the oven, you are going to add the remaining 1 cup of shredded cheese and will bake it for the last 10 minutes.