This simple casserole recipe was very popular in the Marlow household when I was growing up! It’s actually little more than baked beans with ground beef added, but the combination makes a delicious main dish that’s both savory and oh so slightly sweet. I’m sure the fact that the ingredients in Saturday Nite Special are also inexpensive pantry staples made it appealing to a mom on a budget. The brown sugar added to the bacon that tops the casserole give the dish a very modern twist!

Being the rule breakers that we are, Dusty and I prepared Saturday Nite Special for dinner on Sunday evening. LOL We followed the recipe as it appears on Beulah’s recipe card pictured above with one deviation. We replaced the pork and beans with a can of Bush’s Best Original Baked Beans, which added some extra flavor to the dish. I think my mom would approve. Served with some crusty bread and a fresh vegetable salad, Saturday Nite Special was just as tasty and satisfying as I remembered!

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Saturday Nite Special

1 pound lean ground beef
1 (28 ounce) can pork and beans
1 (20 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon salt
1 large onion, thinly sliced

Bacon
¼ cup brown sugar

Directions:
Brown ground beef in hot skillet without added fat. Stir often. Add pork and beans. Drain ¾ cup tomato juice from tomatoes and save for future use. Add remaining tomatoes and salt to browned ground beef mixture. Pour half of mixture into greased 9 x 13 x 2-inch baking dish; cover with sliced onions. Pour remaining beef mixture over onions. Top with strips of bacon and sprinkle with brown sugar. Bake in 350̊ for one hour.

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