It’s all Facebook’s fault. Or, it’s Nicole’s aka HoCo LoCo, since her liking 100 Days of Real Food was the reason I “liked” them and got this recipe.
I have never made baked beans from scratch before seeing this. All this partying is inspiring me to make picnic foods.
We have been out quite a bit lately, what with cooking and creating salads and sauces for Field Day, going to a Fourth of July crab feast taking potato salad with CSA veggies, and now, tomorrow, a housewarming. The beans are perfect to take there, for the grilling. We did try them out tonight with sliders for dinner.
My Adaption of 100 Days of Real Food’s Slow Cooker Baked Beans
INGREDIENTS
2 cups dried navy beans (optional, but recommended: soak beans in water for 6 to 8 hours and then drain)
4 oz bacon, cooked and diced
1 smoked shank
1 onion, diced
1 – 16 oz container of my homemade tomato sauce (you can use canned)
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
3 tablespoons yellow mustard
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
black or red pepper, to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
Place the beans, bacon, pork shank and onion in the bottom of a slow cooker. Set aside.
In a small bowl whisk together the tomato sauce, syrup, mustard, vinegar, chili powder, salt and pepper. Pour over top of bean mixture and then add 3 cups of water. Turn the slow cooker onto high and cook for 10 to 12 hours. Serve warm.
hocofood@@@
AnnieRie Unplugged 
To cut down the slow cooker time, boil for about an hour first. I made some yesterday, took about 6 1/2 hrs in slow cooker then (won’t need as much water in the slow cooker, especially if you soak them the night before). Easy to make from scratch, the hardest part is getting the seasoning blend that you like – peppery? sweet? barbeque?