1950s Busy Day Baked Beans are terrific for the hecticness of September

✯ Day 244 of Vintage 365 ✯

 

While recipes (vintage or otherwise) generally appear on Chronically Vintage on Wednesdays, as yesterday post was all about (my cat) Stella's birthday, I bumped the usual food filled entry up a day. In fact, I think this ends up working out quite well because now we can launch the new month off on a tasty note.

Though it's definitely still more summer than autumn here in Toronto (despite - or perhaps because of! - the powerful storms we've been experiencing in this neck of the woods recently), my mind is already drifting to thoughts of hearty comfort foods with intoxicating aromas that haven't seen the light of day since the last snowfall.

It's scarcely a secret that September can be a hectic month - especially if you have little ones that are headed back to school, or if you've making a beeline for campus life yourself! Aside from academic related reasons, the ninth month of the year is often an action packed one because many other events (sports, Girl Guides or Boy Scouts, clubs, etc) start their new seasons now.

We're also beginning to think about the fall and winter holiday season ahead, digging out and reintroducing cold weather clothes into our wardrobes, raking leaves, possibly harvesting our gardens (and, for some, canning the bounty you've lovingly grown), and readying our homes and lives for the upcoming changing of the seasons.

September is rarely a month when I have time to simply stop and smell the roses (or pumpkins, as the case may be) and I know that many of you are in the same boat, so to help usher in September, today's classic 1952 recipe for Busy Day Beans is one that requires but a handful of ingredients and can be table-ready in no time at all.

{Fragrant, delicious Busy Day Beans are a 1950s staple that work just as well for harried folks today. Vintage recipe image via Curly-Wurly on Flickr. Click here for a larger version of this great recipe.}

You can tweak this simple, delicious recipe to your heart's content. I, for one, would swap out the onion flakes for fresh onions, shallots or green onions (scallions) - sprinkling a handful of the later across the top of each serving before bringing it to the table.

Likewise you can  increase or decrease (or remove entirely) the mustard – why not use spicy, brown, or honey mustard instead, as well. Feel free to toss in any other vegetables (some diced boiled potatoes would be wonderful!) you like, or even cubes of meat (ham, bacon, stewing beef, etc) or tofu for added protein and stick-to-your-ribs filling power.

Ready in just 30 minutes, this speedy vintage one pot dish is the kind meal that's a welcome treat during this mile-a-minute month and well on all through the blustery days of autumn and winter.