Bourbon-Infused Baked Beans

Preheat your oven to a high heat setting of 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius).

Mix together the brown sugar, paprika, mustard, and cayenne pepper in a bowl. Whisk until well combined the pepper soda, ketchup, and Worcestershire sauce to dissolve the brown sugar completely.

Cut 4 slices of bacon into tiny pieces. Cook and stir constantly in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until the bacon is almost golden brown, taking around 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the cooked bacon to a bowl, reserving the remaining bacon fat.

Start by adding the chopped onion into the reserved bacon fat in the Dutch oven; cook and stir until the onion is soft, taking around 3 to 5 minutes. Add minced garlic; cook and stir for just 1 minute. Pour in the bourbon, stirring to loosen any browned bits from the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. Stir in the cooked bacon pieces.

Add to the pot the mixture of brown sugar and baked beans. Simmer until the beans are heated through, which should take around 15 minutes. Arrange on top of the bean mixture the remaining 4 slices of cooked bacon.

Cover the Dutch oven with a lid and bake in the preheated oven until the beans are bubbly, the sauce is syrupy, and everything is hot through, taking approximately 2½ to 3 hours.