Baked Beans have got to be one of the most delicious, and easy, make-ahead dinners you can throw together (surpassed only by All-Day Beef Stew in my menu planner). You can use them as a main dish, and throw some foil-wrapped red potatoes in the oven about 1 1/2-2 hours before mealtime for an almost effortless meal. Or, they make a great side dish to beef, game or turkey sausage. Serve with some fresh or lacto-fermented vegetables (such as Ginger Carrots--sorry, haven't posted the recipe yet), and you've got a meal that busy moms dream about.

Did you know you can make your own beans? It's easy, it's fast, you can start 'em cooking in the morning before you leave for work, and you have a nice side (or main) dish ready when you get home. Then you can double the recipe, freeze the leftovers and throw them in everything from soups to chilies.