Fantastic when used as a base recipe. I added white vinegar (1-2 tsp), 1/2 tsp dry mustard, a dash of poultry seasoning and used red kidney beans as that was what we had on hand. It needs a tang to counter the sweet. I also cooked the onion and garlic first for a more complex flavor.

The first time I made this, I used pancake syrup and it was way too sweet. I just made this recipe again. Except this time I used pure maple syrup. It was fantastic.

These came out pretty well, although next time, I think I would double the "syrup" part of the recipe...they weren't quite as flavorful as I would have liked. I doubled the whole recipe this time. As written, the recipe says it will serve 10, but that seems very unlikely to me.

I added mustard, minced green pepper, ground beef, and omitted the maple syrup to the recipe. Very tasty, we served with corn bread for a complete meal. We will definitely be making again.

Everybody in my family liked this, though we all found it too sweet. The long cooking definitely adds a richness and depth of flavor. I added mustard in with the ketchup mixture, and a half pound of partially cooked bacon and some leftover grilled bratwurst. I also found the beans quite soupy, though that may be because I cooked them in a cast iron Dutch oven and couldn't drain them well after the initial boil. (The soupiness was corrected with cooking after the first three hours at 225 and then for 1/2 hour at 400 before serving, as I was baking muffins.) Next time I think I will omit the maple syrup and use only the brown sugar, and again add mustard and bacon.