Beans and Cornbread, Yes Please

Beans and Cornbread are a staple meal in our house.  Yes, it does scream "I'm from Tennessee" but oh how yummy it is in your tummy!  So simple and it makes a lot.  Great for company and especially delicious in the fall when it is crispy outside.  My mother-in-law Kathy is a wonderful cook and she gave me this recipe.  I am writing it on my blog from memory, so it may not be exact but it will be delicious non the less.

Did I mention you just throw all of this in a crock-pot?!  Told you it was simple. 

Plug in your crock pot and set to cook ALL DAY.  When I worked full-time I would throw this together in the morning and let it go.  When I came home its was almost ready and smelled amazing in the house.

Ingredients: 1 lb bag of PINTO beans, 1 can Rotel (or diced tomatoes with green chilies), 1 package of Real Bacon Pieces, 1 onion, and 2 TBSP Ham Flavored Base (this I call bean seasoning)
*optional, 1 can of Beer at the end...more on that later but it is good

First: wash your pinto beans there have been tiny rocks in my beans EVERY TIME.  You will crack a tooth!
Make sure your crock-pot is on low/8-10 hour cook
Chop your onion into small/diced pieces

See, I told you there were rocks! (and dirt clumps, and bad beans)

Toss in the beans, Rotel (undrained, whole can full), onion, 2 TBSP seasoning, and whole package of Bacon Pieces.
Add 7 cups of water, stir, cover, and forget about it!

The Beer...
Add one can of Beer of your choice to pot one hour before serving.  This is very tasty (however, I do dish out a bowl full of beans and set aside at this point for my girls so it won't have the beer much less the taste of beer)

Whip up a batch of cornbread and serve.  Enjoy!