Being Polish did not sway my choice this week… well maybe just a little. This photo is from Claire in Ottawa, Canada. (Wait! I’m from Canada too! ??) This photo of my Polish Pączki made my mouth water and shows how light these jelly doughnuts are. Claire said, “Unbelievably delicious, they didn’t last long and the kids enjoyed licking the jam off their fingers!” Thank you, Claire.
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My Lemon Brownies – Gluten Free!
Good news for gluten free cooks! I was finally able to get the flour some people have mentioned in their comments and I tried it out with my lemon brownies. They turned out great – I saw no difference in taste or texture. This recipe is exactly the same as my regular lemon brownies only with swapping the regular flour for Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten free baking flour. (This is not a paid endorsement, just a way to share a good recipe that’s gluten free.)
I have only made this recipe with this particular flour and can’t say how it will work with other gluten free flours so it you try it with a different brand of gluten-free flour please comment here on your results. I’m really happy to be able to share this very easy and very popular recipe for lemon brownies (some people call them “yellowies” ?) for everyone who has asked for more gluten-free baking. Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
Photo of the Week
I grew up in Ontario, Canada but that’s not the reason I chose this photo from Gail in Ancaster, Ontario. This picture made me realize, “I need to take a better picture of my beef stew!” ? This stew is so tantalizing that I put the ingredients on my shopping list to make it again myself. Gail wrote, “Hi Jenny, Really enjoy your style of cooking. Simplicity married to nutritious makes perfectly delicious foods. Love it! Here is a photo of your Beef Stew recipe made in my cast iron pan with a heavy lid. It is great comfort food during the lockdown. Blessings to you and yours! ~ Gail Albanese. (Ancaster, Ontario Canada)” Thank you, Gail. ??
These photos are my favorite thing. I still can’t get over seeing my recipes all around the world! ???
You Can Bake Bread Without Yeast
Can’t find yeast? Need to make bread? Here is a bread recipe that uses no yeast, instead using baking soda and buttermilk for a fast and easy loaf, good for sandwiches or toast. When I say “fast” check this: without yeast there is no rising time so the whole recipe, start to finish, takes 35 minutes!
This is basically my version of Irish soda bread so don’t expect it to taste like yeast bread. It might remind you of buttermilk biscuits. I used it for a salmon sandwich yesterday and had it toasted today with breakfast. Most soda breads don’t use eggs but I found that adding the egg makes it lighter and rise more; otherwise, it turned out more dense.
And I tried it with both real buttermilk and with a substitute of milk + white vinegar and I preferred the real buttermilk version. On the bright side, buttermilk should be easier to find than yeast these days. So bottom line, you’ll get the best result using real buttermilk and the egg but if you want to avoid the egg there are lots of Irish soda bread recipes available online for you to choose.
Bread made with yeast is ideal but for anyone in quarantine who can’t find yeast, this is my best version of bread without yeast. Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
Happy Easter
🦋 ~ Happy Easter, Everyone ~ 🦋
Your Photo Of The Week
If anything good could come out of our current worldwide quarantine it’s that people are learning how to cook. It’s given us a chance to either learn or to teach our children this important life skill. That’s why my pick this week is this photo of 9-year old Svea, whose mother sent it in, showing Svea taking pride in this chocolate cake she made all by herself for her family in Minnesota. I hope this inspires other young people to discover the joy (and value) of cooking. ❤️
I Made Casseroles
It may sound crazy but I love grocery shopping. I like to take my time, meander down the aisles, see what’s new, what’s on sale, what the produce guy just rolled out, and I miss that. I miss my favorite checker who always says, “Hi, Jenny.” She’s from Russia and says she learned how to speak English by watching my talk show. I miss her too. And I worry about her because she is an essential worker, close to my age, and is still working now.
It’s not easy getting groceries so I’ve been cooking and freezing as much as I can. Last night I made my two favorite casseroles to freeze in portions. Left is my baked ziti and right is my angel hair casserole. The ziti is made with a meat sauce and three Italian cheeses and the angel hair casserole uses beef, mushrooms, and cheddar cheese. They are both family favorites and luckily they freeze well. I cut them into serving portions today and froze them so we can still have our favorite meals as getting groceries continues to be a challenge.
If you can get the ingredients, I recommend both of these casseroles for freezing. For the Baked Ziti recipe click here and the Angel Hair click here.
Stay well, everyone. ❤️
Your Photo Of The Week
I am thrilled every time someone sends a photo of one of my recipes. My favorite this week is from Valerie, who staged a beautiful table to show off her quick & easy chocolate cake. Actually she made two, one with sugar and one with splenda and she noted that they, “seemed the same in texture and flavor.” Good to know. Thank you, Valerie.
To see more photos sent by home cooks all over the world, click here.
How To Aerate Flour
- Always aerate your flour before measuring.
- If you don’t aerate your flour your dough will be too dry.
- Aerating is NOT the same as sifting.
- Do not sift flour before measuring unless the recipe indicates it.
- See how to aerate flour in this short video.
Need To Bake Bread?
Where’s all the bread? The shelves are empty these days and most of us can’t buy bread. That’s why I’m here! ? If you’ve never baked bread before, I’m here to say you can do it. My bread recipes are very popular because they’re easy. You’ll see a lot of comments like, “This is the first time I’ve ever baked bread and I’m never buying store bought again.”
To help first time bread makers, I’ve put together a list below of some of my easiest and most popular bread recipes. The silver lining in the bread shortage is that you might like your homemade bread so much, you may never go back! Everyone, take care and be well.
Simple Whole Wheat Bread (pictured above)
Faster No Knead Whole Wheat Bread
Kohl’s sells a Dutch oven from Food Network for around $60 (oven safe to 500°F). The ideal size, 5-quart, is on sale now (March 21) online for $48. THIS IS NOT A PAID ENDORSEMENT, JUST SHARING INFORMATION.