slow cooker baked beans

Legally Blonde is one of my favourite movies.  Yes, I know it’s not an Oscar winning piece of work, but some of the lines in it are just too funny.  One in particular is where Paulette says to Elle, "You look like the fourth of July.  Makes me want a hot dog real bad."  

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And that was me.  Wanting a hot dog.  Real bad.  Yes, you heard me right.  I wanted a hot dog.  I know, what you’re thinking.  I don’t eat hot dogs.  You are right.  Most often, I don’t.  But I had a craving.  And it's summer.

Last week on the family vacation, someone brought up a hot dogs to the rented cottage and these same hot dogs went home, unopened.  No lie.  So I needed to take matters into my own hands and buy some Schneiders Country Naturals® hot dogs.   

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The package says it contains no preservatives, no artificial ingredients, colours or flavours, no additives and no MSG or by-products. 

But I couldn’t just have a hot dog all by itself.  Slow Cooker baked beans with their meaty texture and just the right amount of sweetness from the brown sugar and molasses were a perfect side. 

 

Need I say more?

Slow Cooker Baked Beans

Ingredients:

2 cups Great Northern Beans (or any other type would do)

Salt

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

6-8 slices bacon, uncooked

3/4 cup molasses

3/4 cup ketchup

1 can tomato paste

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tsp dry mustard

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Directions:

Sort through beans, discarding any that are discoloured or damaged.  Rinse well.  Place beans in a large pot, cover with water and bring to a boil.  Simmer for 10 minutes.

While beans are simmering, mix garlic, molasses, brown sugar, tomato paste, ketchup, mustard in a small mixing bowl.  Cut bacon into strips. 

Drain and rinse beans.  Transfer to a slow cooker and add chopped onion and bacon.  Reserve 3 slices for top of beans. 

Add 1.5 cups of water and other wet liquid to crock pot ensuring beans are completely immersed. 

Cover and bake on low for 8-10 hours.