DELIGHTFUL BAKED BEANS

[Welland Tribune January 18, 1945]

By Betsy Newman

Like every other dish that we prepare in our kitchens, Baked Beans can be a culinary delight or a tasteless, uninteresting food. There are differences in tastes, of course. Some prefer their foods lightly seasoned and some highly so. Preparing dishes for a family one has to take these preferences into consideration, and if you have both tastes in the same household, take a middle course.

Today’s Menu
Weiners  Baked Beans
Cabbage Salad  Spinach
Apple Pie   Coffee

Boston Baked Beans
1 pint or 2 cups of navy beans
1/4 lb of salt pork
1 tablespoon of minced onion
1  teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of dry mustard
1 tablespoon of molasses
3 tablespoons of brown sugar

Pick beans over carefully, put in collander and wash by letting cold water run over them. Put in pan and cover with cold water, and let stand overnight. Drain off water in the morning, cover with fresh, heat to boiling, simmer 20 minutes, drain, and put into greased bean pot or casserole. While beans are simmering, cut salt pork into cubes (some prefer to leave it in one piece), measure and mix seasonings. Add seasonings to beans, mixing them through well. Bury salt pork in beans, pour in hot water to cover dish and bake in slow oven (250 to 300 deg F) until beans are tender, about 6 to 8 hours. Remove cover during the last half or three quarters of an hour of cooking, to brown. Add boiling water as needed. The beans should be tender, but whole. Serves 6 to 8.

Brown Sugar

All brown sugar may be used in place of sugar and molasses, or all molasses. A favorite at our house is beans cooked as above, but using tomato juice as liquid and 1/2 cup of catsup as part of the seasoning. The dry mustard-if you use same-may be mixed with water to make a thin paste, then mixed in with the beans. The onion may be omitted, too. I prefer my beans without it, although I like onion flavoring. Two tablespoons of brown sugar or molasses would also be sweet enough for many tastes.