Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 11 x 7-inch dish (or another 2-quart baking dish) with cooking spray and set aside.
Steam green beans until tender (I cooked mine in a covered dish in the microwave for about 10 minutes, stirring halfway through). Spread green beans in prepared baking dish and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Give them a good stir.
Cook bacon in a skillet just until done, but not too crispy. Sprinkle bacon on top of the green beans.
In a small bowl, whisk together brown sugar, butter, soy sauce and garlic powder. Pour over the green beans.
Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
Notes
You can substitute with 3 (15 ounce) cans of green beans, drained. There’s no need to cook the canned green beans before placing them in the dish.
If you prefer to use fresh green beans, you will need about 7 cups of fresh cut green beans. Trim and cut the green beans, and then steam them or boil them until tender. Place the cooked green beans in the baking dish and proceed with the recipe instructions.
Fry the bacon just until it's done -- but not crispy. The bacon will continue to cook in the oven and will become perfectly crispy in the end, but you don't want it to burn.
Make your green beans with bacon and onion. To do so, finely mince a small Vidalia onion and sauté in a skillet until tender. Toss the cooked onion with the cooked green beans in the dish, then proceed with the recipe instructions.
Cooking for a smaller family? Cut all of the ingredients in half and bake in a smaller (1 - 1 1/2-quart) baking dish.