I love casseroles. Cook once / eat twice /or three times. And casseroles are always flexible: a little more of this, a little less of that, and they still turn out. This is a little like my Spicy Mexican Casserole but made not spicy using an Anaheim pepper, with corn tortillas and added vegetables. I always try to include as many vegetables as possible in every meal, besides the salads I make every day.
Vegetables are the key to good health so besides lots of fresh tomatoes, I include antioxidant-rich bell pepper along with the Anaheim green chili pepper. Anaheim peppers (also called long peppers) are green and measure about 7 inches long.These peppers are great for anyone not liking anything too spicy but who does like a flavorful pepper. Of course you can use Jalapeño peppers instead but the Anaheim pepper is perfect for me.
This recipe is high in fiber from the black beans and corn tortillas. All corn tortillas are not the same, in fact they can be very different. I tried Whole Foods 365 brand and they were dry and disappointing. My preference is Guerrero brand if you can find them.
You can make lots of variations with this recipe, using cheddar cheese instead of monterey jack, pinto beans instead of black beans, and you can add spices if you like, but I do recommend staying with the fresh tomatoes. They add moisture and fresh taste to this easy casserole.
UPDATE June 3, 2020: I found myself using less and less tomatoes in this recipe and I now prefer it that way. It also means less chopping! 👍 I suggest trying it with only about 3/4 pound of tomatoes.
How exciting to see that my recipes are being made all over the world! I appreciate it when someone takes the time to send a photo and I love knowing where you are from. Please send your photo to: YourPhotos@JennyCanCook.com
“ANONYMOUS” MADE MY NO KNEAD BREAD
“Wholesome goodness from your easiest bread recipe.”
~ That loaf looks great. Thank you for your terrific photo. ~ jenny
KARYN (from Arizona) MADE MY NO KNEAD CRUSTY ROLLS
“Hi Jenny, This is not the greatest photo, but I had to get a photo of the rolls right when I took them out of the oven…. just in case I had messed something up and they deflated or exploded or something lol. They are perfect, well they were perfect. They are all gone now and my poor hubby who has to deal with my baking disasters is actually all smiles now. I just wanted to say Hi and Thank you from Prescott, Arizona. We are up in the mountains and are high elevation, but I didn’t make any changes to your recipe and the rolls were perfect. I am going to tackle a few more recipes this week and I am totally confident they will be amazing. Warmly, Karyn.”
~ Your photo is great. That’s exactly how mine look when they’re done. I’m so glad they were a hit. ~ jenny
RYAN MADE MY BUTTERMILK BLUEBERRY PANCAKES
“Hi Jenny, Found you the other day and have made 4 recipes so far: No Knead Bread (stayed a bit dense) Mac & Cheese (burnt the milk a bit) Lemon Brownies (excellent results) and these wonderful pancakes. I did triple the recipe for my big family and they were a huge hit!! I look forward to making many additional meals from your site and channel. Thanks, Ryan.”
~ Thank you for the photo. They look perfect and it’s good to know you can triple the recipe.~ jenny
MJ MADE MY MARBLE LOAF CAKE
“Jenny, I just had to let your fans know what an amazing cake this is! I used a 7” angel food cake pan (odd size I know but perfect for loaf cakes!). I made the cake exactly as instructed with the addition of orange zest as you suggested. I covered it with chocolate ganache made with chocolate chips and evaporated milk instead of cream – oh – ONE CHANGE – the chocolate swirl was 1/3 cup melted chocolate chips + batter. The cake rose beautifully and it is so tender and moist with a delicate crumb. THANK YOU!”
~ I agree that orange zest is a great addition to this cake and that ganache topping looks yummy.~ jenny
MICHELLE (from Virginia) MADE MY NO KNEAD BREAD
“Jenny, Thank you so much for all your recipes on Youtube- I made this bread tonight and it was a hit with me and my husband. Gonna make your cinnamon rolls this weekend. Thank you for making it not so scary to bake! I usually burn rolls – so it was a double celebration when I didn’t burn this bread! PS- you might want to do a quick video on YouTube and just direct everyone to your website, I thought you had stopped doing videos and was so sad- but saw someone else say they wished you would start your channel back up and another commented that you had your website! So glad I re-found you!! ? thank you again- from Virginia- Michelle.”
~ Thanks so much for your photos. I can almost taste that slice with the butter! ?~ jenny
LARRY (from Illinois) MADE MY CARROT CAKE
“Greetings from (K) Larry in Illinois. First cake I’ve ever made and it came out great! I’ve made quite a few of your recipes now and was getting a little over confidant. I tried a few from other sites and failed! Thank You ……..yours are well thought out, clearly explained and proven. This has been a fun journey for an old guy! Yours have only failed because of me having a “senior moment” !!!! ~ Larry.”
~ Your cake looks great. Thank you for the photo. “Senior moment” huh? I know all about those. ?~ jenny
JERI MADE MY NO KNEAD BREAD & CINNAMON ROLLS
“Love your recipes. I made both your No Knead bread and your Cinnamon Roll recipes. They are both wonderful thank you. I love your cheerful videos for them also. So upbeat. Thank you. ~ Jeri.”
~ Thank you so much for you photos. They will surely inspire many more bakers. ~ jenny
KRISTI MADE MY DARK CHOCOLATE FUDGE BROWNIES
“Jenny another marvelous recipe ‼️ ?Kristi Ham ?”
~ They look really good! Thank you for the photo. ~ jenny
LOANNE MADE MY NO KNEAD BREAD
~ Thank you for the great photos. ~ jenny
LARRY (from Illinois) MADE MY APPLE PIE BARS & PACZKI
“Greetings from Illinois. Made the apple pie bars the other day. Tasted great! and only have 1 piece left. …….used a round pan and mine looked more like a pie. Thanks for the recipe! and I got 2 thumbs up from 2 really good cooks! ~ Larry”
~ Thank you for your photos and I’m glad you’re having fun. Thumbs up from me, too – I love these bars (aka pie!). ~ jenny
“Greetings from Illinois! Just finished another batch of PP. Turned out great again. And I am really having FUN! I over filled one of the doughnut molds (on purpose) with the Pączki dough and it looked almost like a muffin with a small hole on top. Filled a silicone sphere ice cube mold with the dough (just a little too much) and apple butter…….it was almost round. It started to push the 2 molds apart and come out the top. These shot glass molds were frozen/ a mix of oats and ground coffee. Tried to bake them later but they slumped. (but didn’t blow up) Haven’t tried the PP dough in the shot glass molds yet,but I did try the red velvet cup cakes (tasted great!) but couldn’t get them out of the mold in one piece. ~ (K) Larry
KRISTI MADE MY BUTTERMILK BISCUITS
“Loved these biscuits… Jenny can I cut them and freeze the dough ? ?Kristi Ham ?”
~ They look perfect. I have only frozen mine after baking but you could look online for a better answer. Thank you for the great photo. ~ jenny
IAN (from Canada) MADE MY NO KNEAD BREAD
“Great bread, even better with homemade strawberry jam. Even we older men (76) can make this. Ottawa, Canada.”
~ Now that is a handsome loaf of bread right there. Thanks from a fellow Canuck (73). ?? ~ jenny
JAMIE (from Texas) MADE MY NO KNEAD BREAD
“No Knead Bread … that I really need. ? Thank you, Jenny, for this recipe! This is my second loaf, and I have the dough for a third one sitting in a bowl on my counter. It seems to be becoming part of my nightly routine to take 5 minutes, if that, to prep the dough for dinner the next day. It’s so easy; I’m almost embarrassed for myself that I was hesitant and uncertain about whether I could make a delicious loaf of bread or not. I don’t have a Dutch oven, so I cook mine in one of my metal pots that can go into the oven as well, and with fantastic results. So yummy!” All the best, Jamie from Texas.”
~ Thanks for the photo and especially for the helpful detail about your pot. ~ jenny
PATTY MADE MY MEATLOAF
“Absolutely the best ever. Will be making this monthly. So moist and melts in your mouth. Thanks Jenny!”
~ I’m glad you like it and thank you for your terrific photo. ~ jenny
LARRY (from Illinois) MADE MY POLISH PACZKI INTO DOUGHNUTS
“Greetings from Illinois! Just finished my second batch of PP. Turned out great again. The dough is very forgiving…..they looked “rough” going into the oven. I just got my silicone doughnut molds a couple days ago and put some dough in one to try them out. I only filled it with apple butter on one side. It was a little thick, but I have been using a heat lamp with the fast rise yeast and getting good results. Just did the deep dish pizza (12 hour) start to finish in 3 hours. ~ Larry.”
~ It’s great for everyone to know that this dough works in a mold as well. Thank you for sharing this. ~ jenny
LARRY (from Illinois) MADE MY POLISH PACZKI
“Greetings from Il! This was my first attempt at Pączki. Turned out great! Good enough to give away a few. ~ Larry”
~ They look fantastic. Thank you very much for your photo. ~ jenny
Digital Camera
TABITHA (from North Carolina) MADE MY GRANOLA
“Happy New Year Jenny, I just made your granola recipe to bag up to take to work for snacking. ❤️ Tabitha from NC.”
~ Happy New Year back to you and thanks so much for starting it of with a great photo. ~ jenny
What can I say? This is not a dessert to have every day but for holiday baking, pecan pie is a must. But I prefer pecan pie bars because the bars can be cut into smaller pieces than a round pie and no one should eat big pieces of pecan pie! I always use an oil crust and my oil of choice is cold pressed avocado oil. I tried using maple syrup in the filling but did not like the result so I went with the traditional corn syrup, which, by the way, is not the same a high fructose corn syrup.
I only make pecan pie or pecan pie bars twice a year for Thanksgiving and Christmas and it’s a good thing because holiday recipes can be dangerous to have around. This recipe is really simple with just the basic ingredients so it comes together quickly. What I can’t figure out is why my pecans sometimes rise to the top and sometimes don’t, but these easy pecan pie bars are always so gooey and sweet and delicious. Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
Every time I run out of these delicious crispy top oatmeal bars, I need to make more. They are one of my all time favorites and for lots of reasons. There is no white flour, lots of dark chocolate chunks, and the recipe is easy to put together. The crispy top is the best part, made with pecans, brown sugar, and coconut. I have made the top with avocado oil and with melted butter and there’s not much difference to me.
I like something sweet after every meal, even breakfast, and this is my favorite breakfast dessert. Well, between the fig bars and these oat bars, maybe it’s the fig bars, no,,, the oat bars… oh well. I just love sweets so I have to keep finding ways to make them healthier. Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
Some days, the faster I can make dinner the better. Today is one of those days and this easy one pan spaghetti with cherry tomatoes and broccoli takes 18 minutes, including prep. I mean it. I’ve even made it in 16 minutes!
This is one of my easy one pan meals where everything cooks in one pan, including the spaghetti. I use thin spaghetti because it cooks in 9 minutes but if you use regular spaghetti you will have to add a little extra time. Stirring is important to keep the spaghetti from sticking so stir it vigorously to separate the strands.
I rarely drain pasta any more. I’m making more and more one pan meals and besides being less work, there’s less cleanup – Bonus! Cherry tomatoes and fresh broccoli are always available so if you keep them on hand, you can always make an easy, healthy dinner in less than 20 minutes.
This is such a refreshing salad to serve in the summer and now is the best time to get crisp, fresh Persian cucumbers. If you can find organic cucumbers, you can just scrub them and leave the peel on. If they’re not organic, it’s best to peel them for this salad.
I slice the cucumbers very thinly, no more than 1/8 of an inch thick, and for the onion, the thinner the better as well. The dressing uses a good amount of sugar but remember that most of the dressing is not eaten. You serve this salad with a slotted spoon and leave the liquid behind so don’t fret about using a tablespoon of sugar.
If you serve this cucumber salad right away it will be quite crisp, and if you refrigerate it for an hour or more, the cucumber slices will soften and absorb a little more dressing. They are good either way but it’s best to serve this salad on the same day.
I wish everyone a fun summer with lots of good, healthy, homemade food, including this cool and crisp, cucumber salad. Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
It takes less than 30 minutes and just a few basic ingredients to make this easy pasta fagioli soup from scratch. Cannellini beans and ditalini pasta are traditional for this popular Italian soup. I use canned cannellini beans but I can never find ditalini so I use a different small pasta, DeCecco small elbows (no. 81).
For the tomato, I use Pomi Strained tomatoes that come in a box. Once opened, I freeze 1/2 cup portions specifically to have on hand for this delicious soup. One box gives me six 1/2 cup portions. I also use my own homemade chicken stock (there’s always some in the freezer) but you can use store bought stock.
I thicken the soup by dividing the beans in half and mashing one half with a fork, which takes less than a minute and I focus on the broken ones for mashing (the whole ones look better for serving).
And this is good: You’ll only have one pot to wash. Most recipes cook the pasta separately but I cook mine right in the soup. Prep your vegetables first because this easy recipe comes together quickly. Sometimes, it’s all I need for a meal – just a big bowl of pasta fagioli and a slice of my crusty bread. If it’s all you’re having, this recipe makes two large servings. Otherwise, it will serve three. Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
I took my treasured oatmeal chocolate chip bars to a new stratosphere today. Besides using chunks of a dark chocolate bar, I added a broiled coconut-pecan topping and all I can say is, “Somebody, please hide them from me!” This hybrid dessert has no white flour, lots of fiber, dark chocolate chunks, and a crispy topping — I love love love it!
All I did was use the topping from my Oatmeal Snacking Cake and put it on my Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars. I broiled it for about a minute and I have a new dessert that is healthier than most and really easy to make. You can use butter or oil in the topping so anyone like me, who prefers baking without butter, will love this too. These healthy bars are so yummy, I froze some because… well I just had to. ?
I like this so much I added it as a new recipe. For my new Oatmeal Bars With A Crispy Coconut Top, click here– Jenny Jones
Autumn is here and that means it’s apple pie time. I always make it with an oil crust because if nothing else, it’s just easier. You can pat it into the pan but I find that rolling it between sheets of wax paper is the best way to use an oil crust, especially for the top. My apples of choice are granny smith ? and my thickener of choice is tapioca but flour works too.
Homemade apple pie is something special. We were at a social gathering last night and when desserts were set out, I told some friends I had just made an apple pie and it was cooling on the counter at home. If they wanted to, we could skip the prepared desserts and go to my house for apple pie. “Homemade apple pie? Let’s go!”
That’s the power of homemade apple pie. My husband’s two favorite desserts are my Fresh Strawberry Cake and Homemade Apple Pie. Nothing compares. I love this delicious pie and I must admit I like the power. I think I hear him in the garage right now cleaning things up. ? Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
Somebody needs to stop me from eating my third slice of this delicious sweet bread! I’m happy to share my easy recipe for cinnamon swirl raisin bread and there are a few reasons why I think you’ll like it. First, it’s good! Second, it’s easy to make compared to most other recipes. Third, it’s a faster, one-rise recipe so the bread is ready to eat in 90 minutes. I use a mix of yellow and red raisins because I like the two different colors and textures.
Swirled loaves often wind up with gaps inside the loaf and it happens to me too. One day it’s perfectly tight and the next time I make it I get gaps but even with a gap, this cinnamon bread is still fantastic. I made the one below the exact same way as the one above, and it developed some small gaps but that didn’t stop me from enjoying it. With or without gaps, it’s the best cinnamon raisin bread I’ve ever had.
If you’re tempted to spread butter on it before adding the brown sugar/cinnamon mixture, I do not recommend it because when I tried it, the loaf did not hold together as well. In fact, this bread has no butter at all – I make it with extra light olive oil and it’s delicious! I hope you’ll try this recipe, follow it exactly, and let me know how yours turned out. Click here for the recipe. – Jenny Jones
I love casseroles. Cook once / eat twice /or three times. And casseroles are always flexible: a little more of this, a little less of that, and they still turn out. This is a little like my Spicy Mexican Casserole but made not spicy using an Anaheim pepper, with corn tortillas and added vegetables. I always try to include as many vegetables as possible in every meal, besides the salads I make every day. 
These peppers are great for anyone not liking anything too spicy but who does like a flavorful pepper. Of course you can use Jalapeño peppers instead but the Anaheim pepper is perfect for me.
