If you like a super crispy pizza crust like I do, then a pizza stone is the way to go. Last night I was craving a plain cheese pizza but it had to be well done and crispy so I used my favorite pizza stone (yes, I have more than one!). This one is black so it absorbs heat really well. I placed it in the oven and preheated it as high as it would go – 500 degrees. Those commercial ovens go a lot higher than that but I preheated the oven and stone for almost an hour and put my pizza in there using a wooden peel. I used to sprinkle the peel with cornmeal but now I just use parchment paper. I cover the peel with parchment, place my pizza dough on top and spread the sauce and cheese. Then I slide it onto the stone, paper and all, and later on when it’s almost done, I remove the paper and let it finish. In this photo I had just removed the paper and I still baked it another couple of minutes for an even more well done crust. Then… no fork, no plate… just slice, pick up, and into the pie hole!

Dear Jenny,
I hope you can help. I love making pancakes but they are never light and fluffy like the pictures I see. I like to add diced apple and wonder if that could be weighing them down, but then even when I make them plain, they still come out kind of flat (& not very pretty). Even though they still taste good, I want them to look good too. Any thoughts?

My response…

Dear Angela,
I think I know what the problem is. The biggest mistake people make with pancakes is to over-mix them. So if you’re using an electric mixer, put it away! The batter should be gently stirred or folded using a spatula or large spoon with just a few turns. In fact, it should actually be lumpy and not smooth. Adding the apples or other fruit (like blueberries!) should not make a difference, except they will be healthier. Good luck.

Hi Jenny:
Love your site. It looks inviting and the colors are refreshing but not “old.” Love your advice. I’ve been trolling the internet for information on increasing energy, reducing loss of skin-tone, reducing fat accumulation, … for a very long time.

I have, indeed, found numerous resources and I work to maintain a healthy lifestyle, however I am allergic to tomatoes, and all citrus fruits plus almonds. This puts quite a damper on recipes I find. Do you have any suggestions of what/how I might cook with these restrictions.

Onward,
Marilynn B.

My response…

Marilynn, your allergies shouldn’t stop you from making healthy choices. Instead of citrus fruits (a good source of vitamin C) you can get your C from red peppers, papaya, broccoli or cantaloupe just to name a few. Instead of almonds, use walnuts which actually have the most Omega-3 fatty acids of all the nuts. As for tomatoes, a good source of lycopene, you can get that from other red fruits like watermelon (Yum!) but have a little fat with it (like a couple of walnuts) for better absorption of the lycopene. Check your overall diet if you’re lacking energy – too many carbs and sugars can be the culprit. And protect your skin tone with sunscreen every day, even the cloudy ones. It seems to me you can cook lots of things, especially the important ones: vegetables, as well as rice, pasta, eggs, and meats. Just be grateful you’re not allergic to chocolate. Oh, the horror!! 🙂

Jenny

If you’re making a Thanksgiving turkey dinner, try making fresh cranberries this year. This recipe is as simple as it gets and it takes about five minutes. Check the ingredients in the canned stuff – it has high fructose corn syrup and …isn’t it really cranberry flavored jello? Make the real deal and you’ll get all the health benefits too.

It makes an impressive bring-along if you want to impress your mother-in-law. She will love this dish but she’ll still think you’re not good enough for her baby! Oh well…

Click here for the recipe and video.

I tried making granola bars a few years ago and they were, let’s just say… a little crisp. It took some effort to actually bite into them but there was no way to determine if the extreme crunch was the bar or one of my teeth. So I gave up, but only for a while because I am not a quitter. I challenged myself to make a healthy, crunchy, chewy granola bar that wouldn’t double as a tire iron. I did it. It took a few tries but I finally came up with this easy recipe and you can customize it a bunch of different ways with different nuts, dried fruit, even chocolate chips. I use the mini chocolate chips but Denis always wants the big ones. Maybe when the garage gets cleaned out…

Click here for the recipe and video.

I love Chinese food but everything I like is batter fried! So I finally mastered my own recipe for Orange Sesame Chicken that is healthy, crazy good, and it cooks in less than ten minutes! You’ll need a couple of not-so-common ingredients like toasted sesame oil but this dish is so worth it. If you can’t find the toasted sesame oil or toasted sesame seeds, try the Asian section of your market, Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s. It took me about ten tries to get it just right and now I have to share it.  I hope you don’t like leftovers because there won’t be any! Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones

Jenny,

If I want to add lowfat healthy seasoning to the paperbag popcorn what would you suggest? before or after popping? mrs.dash has several varieties without sodium etc, have you experimented?

Lynda

Lynda,

If you pop without oil, I would add the dry seasoning after because otherwise, it won’t stick. If you use oil, you can add the seasoning with the oil and shake the bag well before popping. Depending on your tastes, you can add all kinds of seasonings like garlic powder, cayenne pepper, chili powder, onion powder, dried herbs, or a little parmesan cheese.

Jenny

As promised, here is the recipe for my Sweet 3-Hour Pickles.

I know I said the dill pickles were my favorite but now I think I like these better. They really are ready to eat in three hours but you can keep them a lot longer than that.

I’ve always loved pickles and sauerkraut and now I know they are good for you… As long as you don’t put them on a bacon burger!

Click here for the recipe.

Can you believe you can make pickles in three hours? Delicious, crisp dill pickles? Hello! Three hours. That’s why they’re so crisp! A few of you asked for my pickle recipe so here it is. I tried a few more versions over the weekend and I like this one the best.

I also have a recipe for sweet pickles which I will post this week but the dill pickles are my favorite.  Click here for the recipe.