A thoroughly scrumptious 1950s pot roast recipe

It is not exactly a secret that sometimes when one spies a yesteryear recipe, it's apt to raise a few eyebrows (tuna, Jell-o, pimento, American cheese, and gobs of mayo in the same dish, why not?!) and make even the most ironclad stomachs amongst us do a double take.

Much as I do actually love a good, kooky vintage recipe (nothing ventured, right?), I know that not everyone who plonks themselves down at my dinner table is always going to share my gusto for the - how shall we say - more unique offerings that vintage recipe booklets, magazines, and cookbooks like to dish up.

With that thought planted firmly in mind, I always keep an eye open for old school recipes that could just as easily have come straight from the pages of the most contemporary of culinary sources, and I think that (assuming one doesn't mind a little ketchup with their beef) today's recipe for Highland Pot Roast hits that mark wonderfully.

With nary a drop of mayo or speck of pimento in sight, this recipe sets the tongue aflutter at first reading, and will likely have you making a beeline for the closest butcher's shop in the very near future.




{A handful of timelessly tasty ingredients partner up in this hearty, delicious pot roast recipe from the 1950s, that is sure to impress and thoroughly fill all your dinner guests. Image via Charm and Poise on Flickr.}



I've long been a fan of meat dishes that have a subtle hint of sweetness to them and this elegant pot roast delivers just that thanks to the use of dried apricots (if you had any to hand, dried peaches or plums would be excellent here as well) and good old-fashioned Heinz ketchup.

There's really very little I'd alter about this cold-weather-perfect beef recipe, save perhaps to toss in a few herbs (I'm thinking fresh thyme and parsley - a little dried sage would be lovely, too) and up the black pepper content a tad. You could play around with the veggies, adding or swapping in things such as parsnips, onions (yes, I think a bit of onion is in order), or sweet potatoes (which would harmonize really nicely with the apricots).

Serve this roast with a hefty helping of mashed potatoes, creamed spinach and some fluffy buttermilk biscuits during the nippier months, or a cucumber salad and French bread if you're getting treated to an Indian summer this year, for a vintage recipe that succeeds beautifully in being an appealing classic no matter what decade it is.

A hearty 1950s chicken recipe that's perfect for fall

For ages now - and I know exactly why (initially, years ago, I first started posting recipes here on that day of week) - I've almost only posted recipes (be they vintage or modern classics) on Wednesdays. A creature of habit, I didn't deviate from this pattern much, but it's been gnawing away at me lately that doing so is rather unnecessary, as there's no specific reason why recipes need to appear on Wednesday, and I rather like the sense of shaking things up that comes from posting them (at least sometimes) on other days of the week as well.

With that thought firmly planted in mind, I woke up on this nippy November morning and decided it was high time a recipe appear on Friday. And come to think of Friday makes a lot of sense as a day on which to chat about cooking, as it's always lovely to have a new recipe or two in the wings as we head into the weekend.

As I'd imagine many of you are up to your ears in candy and chocolate, today's recipe is not for a dessert or other sweet treat – fear not! Today the focus is on dinner (or a wonderfully filling lunch), and comes in the form of a thoroughly yummy looking vintage recipe from 1957 called Harvest Chicken.

While some parts of the world are already shaking hands with snow again, others are still beautifully immersed in the midst of harvest season (and certainly Thanksgiving later in the month is all about celebrating the wondrous bounty that autumn delivers), so before Old Man Winter comes a knocking again, I wanted to share this recipe with all of you.



{Don't you just adore the cute crooning chickens on this cold weather perfect 1950s recipe page for Harvest Chicken? Image via Charm and Poise on Flickr.}



Of course, you can make it any ol' time of the year that your heart desires, I just like the fact that it's a fifties dish with a seasonal name to it. The ingredients themselves aren't overly autumnal, but the sight of a stick-to-your ribs chicken dinner like this certainly is.

With Thanksgiving and Christmas rounding the bend once more (hard to believe, considering I can still see our jack-o-lantern from here, I know), you could just as easily make this crowd pleasing dish with turkey meat instead. Pork - such as lean pork loin - used here would also make for a lovely, stick-to-your ribs kind of supper. (And of course, you can swap out the shortening for butter, margarine or your favourite cooking oil, if you’d prefer.)

I like to serve saucy poultry recipes like this with a steaming side of rice - perhaps basmati or a wild mix, just depending on my mood - or some plain pasta (tossed with a little butter). Sometimes polenta, mashed or baked potatoes, or quinoa step in, too, or instead of rice or pasta. Alternatively, you can skip some carbs and just go to town on a big plate full of this chicken and vegetable mix, perhaps with some sautéed baby spinach or a salad of mixed greens and grapefruit to accompany it.

Aside from the chicken itself, this vintage dish is quite economical, which I just adore (I also love that it's gluten-free, without me having to ditch or change any ingredients), and is a breeze to toss together - making it especially well suited to the holiday season when money and time alike are both often very precious commodities.

Happy start of November, sweet friends, I hope the month ahead is a fantastic one for everybody - and am really looking forward to celebrating another fantastic tail end of the year with all of you!