This kid friendly barbecue recipe is my family’s all-time favorite meal. Several of my kids ask for it on their birthdays every year. It is super simple to make and I’ve included a gluten free option as we have some special dietary needs in our house. The post contains tips on preparing the meal. The full recipe is at the bottom of the post.
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Welcome to Friday Favorites! Weekly posts in which I share some of my favorite things. These are things that help me as I chase those moments with my family. I’m so excited to share them with you!
This week on Friday Favorites I am excited to share with you my family’s top-requested meal. No joke, my kids ask for this meal every day until I make it and then a few times a week for a month or so until they start in again asking every day. A couple of my kids (and my hubby) even ask to have it as their special birthday meal.
What I like about this kid friendly barbecue recipe is that it is super easy to whip up, very cheap to stock the ingredients for, and simple to make gluten free. Since entering the world of gluten free eating, I’ve been trying to duplicate all my family’s favorites using gluten free ingredients. This one is one of the easier ones, thankfully, since my poor newly-gluten-free hubby has had to give up so many of his favorite foods.
So, without further ado, I give you….Barbecue Pie. This recipe is not original to me, but, in true Melissa form, I changed it a bit to fit my family’s likes and my style of cooking. (Find the original recipe I adapted here.)
First, gather all your ingredients. Bonus points if you have a cute little assistant to help.
I like to drizzle a bit of olive oil in my frying pan and start the onions sautéing before adding in the ground beef. I love using an electric frying pan for dishes like this. It is so easy and fast to cook everything together. Mine is a 15″ similar to this one.
Once your meat is all browned, stir in all the remaining ingredients except those for the topping. Turn the heat down to simmer while you prep the topping. If the meat mixture is bubbling, be sure to stir once in a while so it doesn’t stick and burn.
Now for the topping. I use a one-to-one gluten free flour mixture. Krusteaz, Bob’s Red Mill, and Pillsbury all are mixes that I have tried and they all work really well. Due to other allergies, I have to carefully choose mixes that do not use any type of nut-based flours. I have not forayed into making my own mixtures yet. Maybe one day! Krusteaz is what I am using here, as you can tell in the pictures.
If you are not gluten free, any kind of biscuit mix will work great! I used to use either Bisquick or, more often, mix my own.
You want your topping to be about the consistency of pancake batter. Then just pour it over your beef and bean mixture in a 9×13 casserole dish. Don’t worry about filling in all the holes. The batter will grow together as it cooks.
I received some Pyrex as a wedding gift, and it is still going strong! Love it! I use my big casserole dish all the time. This is the set I have.
Once it comes out of the oven, drizzle the top with a bit more barbecue sauce and sprinkle with cheese. Let it sit for 5 minutes or so until the cheese is melted. Enjoy!
This kid friendly barbecue recipe is great as a one-dish meal. However, if you have a large family full of big eaters like I do, you probably want to serve some sides with it. Some good options would be salad, beef seasoned rice, rolls, green beans, mashed potatoes, or my Cheesy Garlic and Herb Cauliflower recipe. The options are almost limitless!
This kid friendly barbecue recipe is sure to be a hit with the whole family! Do be prepared for a fight over the leftovers the next day. If you have any, that is!
If you gave this recipe a try, let me know in the comments! What sides did you pair it with? Did you go gluten free or full gluten?
Barbecue Pie
Ingredients
2 TBP olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
1-1.5 lb ground beef
1 can your favorite baked beans (be sure to check the label if making gluten free)
1 cup your favorite barbecue sauce (be sure to check the label if making gluten free)
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
drizzle of barbecue sauce, for top
6 oz shredded cheese of your choice, for top (cheddar, colby jack, or a fiesta blend all work very well)
For bread topping:
2 cups baking mix or 1.5 cups gluten free baking mix
enough milk to bring mixture to the consistency of thick pancake batter
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375.
- Sauté onion in olive oil on medium heat for a few minutes, then add ground beef.
- Once the meat is browned, add baked beans, barbecue sauce, Worcestershire, salt, and pepper. Lower temp to simmer.
- Stir together baking mix and milk until well-mixed. Spoon meat mixture into casserole dish and pour topping evenly on top. Don’t worry about filling in all the gaps, it will fill in as it bakes.
- Bake for 25 min or until bread topping is done. There may be cracks in the topping, especially if you are using a gluten free crust, but don’t worry. They will be hidden by the toppings.
- Pull out of oven and drizzle top lightly with barbecue sauce and cover with cheese. Let sit about 5 minutes until cheese is melted.
- Enjoy!
*Warning! There may be little to no leftovers because everyone keeps going back for more! So you may need an extra meal plan for tomorrow!
If you love this recipe, I bet you’d like Kid-Friendly Enchiladas, Cheeseburger Casserole, or Weeknight Taco Bake and all the others over on the Recipes page. I do more than recipes! Check out the pages Activities, Reviews, and Moments for lots of family-oriented encouragement and activities. And the Chasing Those Moments Shop has plenty of educational and fun resources for the whole family.
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